January 9, 2010 - Naharnet - Cassesse in Beirut in February, Charge Sheet Does Not Include Hizbullah

Special Tribunal for Lebanon Antonio Cassesse announced he will visit Beirut in February for to discuss with Lebanese officials work arrangements and procedures to be adopted.In remarks published Friday by al-Mustaqbal newspaper, Cassesse said Lebanon is one leg of his tour that will take him to Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Turkey "in order to conclude agreements with these countries sponsoring cooperation with the court so as to facilitate its task and provide fair trials."He stressed that "the court is now outside pressures and compromises," adding that the STL was now completing the administrative work that makes it ready for the start of the trial after prosecutor Daniel Bellemare hands down the indictments.Meanwhile, al-Akhbar daily quoted a senior STL source as saying that Bellemare's charge sheet will not include Hizbullah, the resistance or Syria, but rather "names of persons."