The Daily Star - Bellemare: Media reports could endanger lives Hariri rejects CBC documentary’s claims that ISF officer may have had role in his father’s assassination - November 25, 2010

By Patrick Galey BEIRUT: The prosecutor of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) warned Tuesday that media reports relating to his investigation could endanger lives, as Prime Minister Saad Hariri said that leaked information did not serve the pursuit of justice.

STL Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare slammed a documentary by Canadian broadcaster CBC – which implicated Hizbullah in the murder of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri – and vowed the United Nations-backed court would continue unmolested.

“The most serious impact of the CBC reports is that their broadcast may put people’s lives in jeopardy,” he said. “It will be for the judges, and the judges alone, to assess the evidence and reach conclusions based on the facts as established at trial.”

Hariri rebuffed claims made by CBC investigative reporter Neil MacDonald that Internal Security Forces intelligence chief Wissam al-Hassan – a longtime confidante of the Hariri family – may have had a role in his father’s killing.

“We usually don’t officially comment on probe-related material that is not officially issued by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, but I personally think that information leakage doesn’t serve justice,” the prime minister told reporters.

When asked about the possible culpability of Hassan, who was responsible for Rafik Hariri’s safety yet was absent from the former statesman’s motorcade as it was hit by a massive car bomb on February 14, 2005, Hariri said: “Hassan had and will always have our full trust.”

Hizbullah refused to be drawn on the documentary’s findings.

“In general, these kinds of leaks only show how much we were right when we said that [the STL] is not credible,” a party source told The Daily Star.

CBC’s investigation – entitled “Getting Away with Murder” and based on the anonymous statements from “a half dozen” former STL investigators – claimed to have uncovered systemic flaws in the UN-backed court’s operations. In addition, it showed cellphone records, deciphered and correlated by Wissam Eid, an ISF officer who trawled raw call data and created color-coded networks of individuals thought to have been involved in Hariri’s killing. The information unearthed by Eid, who was assassinated in early 2008, showed that Hizbullah members had been pursuing the former premier and had been in the blast vicinity on the day of his death, CBC reported.

A statement from Bellemare’s office said the Canadian judge was “extremely disappointed” with CBC’s report.

“The office of the prosecutor’s decision not to comment on matters relating to the investigation will not change. This decision is based on considerations of utmost concern for the integrity of the investigation and the safety of victims, witnesses, suspects and staff. Preserving confidentiality is essential for the success of the investigation,” the statement added.
An STL spokesperson declined to comment on CBC’s report. “This is [a matter] for the office of the prosecutor. We cannot comment on these things because they are to do with the investigation,” the spokesperson told The Daily Star.

But the UN voiced its concern over continued information leaks which result in media reports dealing with investigative and potentially sensitive details.

“It is a matter of concern that the leaks could have an effect on the substance of the work by the prosecutors and the tribunal itself,” UN Spokesperson Farhan Haq said late Monday. “Certainly leaks are matters of concern. We want to be able to ensure that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon can go about its work without hindrance or interference.” Haq also called on CBC to hand over information which may be of interest to Bellemare.

The program cast the spotlight on Hassan, who avoided Hariri’s bombing via what it called a flimsy alibi. CBC’s website displayed an investigation document referring to Hassan as “a possible suspect in the Hariri killing,” adding that he was a “key interlocutor for the [UN International Independent Investigation] Commission. He is in a unique position to influence our investigation.”

Free Patriotic Movement Leader Michel Aoun, in a Tuesday press conference, called on the STL to examine revelations contained within CBC’s program. “International investigations should be expanded to uncover Hassan’s role,” Aoun said. He added that Hassan “also has a role in the issue of ‘false witnesses.’”

Last week, the BBC shelved a series of films investigating the death of billionaire Hariri. Although the organization claimed it needed additional time to ensure the programs complied with its editorial guidelines, doubts have been raised over the timing of the decision; an Al-Akhbar report said the BBC would also implicate Hizbullah in the bombing.

The party has warned of consequences should anticipated STL indictments against its members materialize.

Bellemare remained confident that his probe would be allowed to run its course. “Whatever the challenges faced in this investigation, which has been conducted in extremely difficult circumstances, the staff of the office of the prosecutor remain committed to bringing it to a successful conclusion,” he said.