Now Lebanon - Victims apply to participate in case before STL, November 1, 2011

More than 60 people have applied to participate as victims before the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) in the case of Ayyash et al, according to a statement published on the STL’s website on Tuesday.
“A deadline for their applications had been set by [STL] Pre-Trial Judge [Daniel Fransen] on September 8 and expired yesterday,” the statement said.
The applicants are members of various Lebanese communities and include people who suffered different kinds of harm as a result of the February 14, 2005 attack which killed former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and 21 others.
“These and other victims have been met by the STL's Victims' Participation Unit, which has a mandate to inform victims about their rights before the Tribunal and to help them apply for participation if they wish to do so,” the statement added.
“The victims' applications will now be translated and then provided to [Fransen], who will decide on each individual application for participation and issue a decision in due course. This process might be expected to take up to several months.”
The statement added that according to Fransen’s order, “victims who did not apply by the deadline might still be permitted to participate if they can show valid reasons in order to justify the late submission of their application.”
The STL indicted four Hezbollah members identified as Salim Ayyash, Mustafa Badreddine, Hussein Anaissi and Assad Sabra. The Shia group, however, strongly denied the charges and refuses to cooperate with the court.