BEIRUT: The Special Tribunal for
Lebanon, investigating the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik
Hariri, Wednesday released its third annual report, covering the activities of
the court over the last year.
The report covers the period from
March 2011 to the end of January 2012, and documents the confirmation of the
first indictment, issued in January 2011.
It details the finding by the
Pre-Trial Judge that three further attacks – against Marwan Hamade, George Hawi
and Elias Murr – were connected, thus giving the Tribunal jurisdiction over
them.
It also covers the decision by the
Trial Chamber to try the four accused Hezbollah members in absentia – the first
time an international criminal court has done so.
The report marks the beginning of
the STL’s second mandate, which began on March 1 and which will continue for
another three years. The annual report reveals that the approved budget for the
Tribunal, between Jan. 1, 2012, and Dec. 31, 2012, is 55.3 million euros ($72.5
million).
In the foreword, the court’s
president, David Baragwanath, in the foreword says that the report “looks
forward to the year to come, which we expect to be one of major developments,
including judicial activity.”
The conclusion states the key aims
of the Tribunal: to continue with investigations, to “support the Lebanese
people in coming to terms with the serious consequences of the assassinations
and, more generally, to assist in restoring faith in the rule of law in a
country where assassinations have been employed as a political technique,” and
thirdly to deliver justice fairly, and promptly.
Until Feb. 28, 2013, the report
adds, “the Tribunal may be expected to start trial proceedings against the four
accused and to “prepare to consider charges in any other cases.”
The report reiterates that “after this ...
phase, Lebanon will be able to leave this troubled period behind, remembering
its ancient past as the cradle of modern civil law, and finally free to focus
on the future.”http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Local-News/2012/Mar-08/165938-baragwanath-2012-set-to-be-a-year-of-major-developments-for-the-stl.ashx#axzz1oM3eP0Kk
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