August 10, 2010 - Daily Star - STL for truth in Hariri case, ‘not to settle political scores’ – Safadi

BEIRUT: Economy and Trade Minister Mohammad Safadi rejected in comments on Monday all attempts to politicize the work of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) probing the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Premier Rafik Hariri.

“The international tribunal was set up to uncover the truth about the assassination of former Prime Minister Hariri and not to settle political scores,” Safadi said during a ceremony to mark the start of the holy month of Ramadan.

Safadi said the STL was formed “to put an end to the series of assassinations in Lebanon.” He said he rejected the politicization of the STL “or it being used as an instrument for vengeance and political blackmail.”

In July, Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah revealed that he was aware the UN-backed tribunal probing the Hariri murder was likely to indict members of his party, slamming the court as an “Israeli project.”

Nasrallah’s statements on the STL sparked fears of an outbreak of violence in already tense Lebanon and prompted a landmark summit in Beirut late in July between Syrian President Bashar Assad, Saudi King Abdullah and Lebanese leaders in a bid to ease tensions.

“We refuse to let the tribunal become an instrument in the hands of superpowers on the negotiating table and we also refuse to let this tribunal serve the interests of Israel, which wants to tamper with facts,” Safadi said.

The minister warned that Israel was seeking to stir internal strife in Lebanon in order “to avenge its repeated defeats.”

Safadi added that Lebanon’s recovery hinges only on the unity of its people, noting that Israel was endeavouring to shake this unity. He also cautioned that Israel was also trying to spread rumors to pit the Lebanese against each other.

He accused Israel of planting spying networks in Lebanon over the past few years, adding that these networks were crumbling every day.

Safadi also applauded the “heroic Lebanese Army which confronted an Israeli attack in the south a few days ago.”

On August 4, a deadly firefight on the border between Lebanon and Israel took the lives of two Lebanese soldiers, a Lebanese journalist and an Israeli colonel. The standoff was sparked when Israeli troops tried to cut down a tree on the border, on the Lebanese side of the security fence.

Safadi said Israel continued to violate all United Nations resolutions in the south. The minister called on Lebanese political groups to close ranks and to continue dialogue.

On Monday, Safadi met with Syrian Deputy Premier for Economic Affairs Abdullah al-Dardari in Damascus to discuss bilateral ties and cooperation in the fields of trade and economy, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported.

Safadi highlighted the need to enhance bilateral relations, adding that Lebanon wanted to boost economic ties with Damascus, SANA said. He added that if Syria was doing well, Lebanon was doing well and vice versa.

Dardari, meanwhile, voiced the importance of increasing trade exchanges between Beirut and Damascus, as well as boosting bilateral ties to foster new projects between the two countries, SANA added. – The Daily Star