Hariri assassination tribunal starts

An international tribunal to prosecute suspects in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri opened at a ceremony in a village outside The Hague today.

The court’s registrar Robin Vincent asked for a moment of silence to commemorate Hariri and the 22 others killed in a suicide bombing in Beirut on February 14, 2005.

Court prosecutor Daniel Bellemare of Canada said he expects to ask within weeks for Lebanon to transfer to the court four pro-Syrian generals who are suspects in the assassination.

"We are not here for the United Nations, nor for the international community, but for Lebanon,'' Vincent said.

“We are not here for the perpetrators of crimes but for the victims of crime.”

Bellemare told pan-Arab satellite TV channel al-Arabiya that the request to transfer the four pro-Syrian generals “will be made as soon as possible”.

“I have no reasons to believe that the Lebanese authorities will not respond in a timely fashion to the request,” he added.

The generals led Lebanon’s police, intelligence service and an elite army unit at the time of the assassination. They are the only people in custody, though they have not been formally charged.

The new court has a wing ready to detain suspects in a Hague jail that already holds Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and former Liberian President Charles Taylor, among other international war crimes suspects.

Today a small group of Lebanese gathered outside the court to show their support. One of them waved a small piece of paper bearing the words “Thank you Holland” written in Dutch.

Bellemare told Dubai-based and Saudi-funded al-Arabiya he was not yet in a position to issue indictments despite four years of complex investigations.

“I will move on the indictments when I am ready,” he said. “Unfortunately I cannot tell or predict when this will be but I can assure ... you I will do everything possible to make sure that the investigation moves as quickly as possible.”

As prime minister, Hariri, a billionaire businessman, was credited with rebuilding downtown Beirut after the 1975-90 civil war, and with trying to limit Syria’s influence.

Many in Lebanon believe Syria was behind the assassination. Damascus denies any involvement.

After the assassination, mass street protests in Lebanon and international pressure forced Syria to withdraw its troops from its neighbour after a 29-year presence.

The court was set up by the UN Security Council in 2007 and comprises both foreign and Lebanese judges. It is based in the Netherlands to ensure the safety of staff and an impartial trial.

It will have four Lebanese and seven international judges and will use Lebanese law. The court does not have the death penalty.

The judges have not yet been sworn in and the names of Lebanese judges have been withheld out of fears for their safety.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, on a trip through Africa, issued a statement praising the tribunal’s opening.

“The commencement of the tribunal’s work marks a decisive milestone in the tireless efforts by all Lebanese and the international community to uncover the truth, bring those responsible for this assassination and related crimes to justice and end impunity,” he said.