UN-backed probe into Hariri killings seeks information held by Hizbollah leader

The prosecutor of the United Nations-backed court set up to try suspects in the murders of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri and 22 others has asked the country’s authorities to hand over all information allegedly held by Hizbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah pertaining to the 2005 attack.

Mr. Nasrallah held a press conference on 9 August during which he offered information to assist the investigation, and showed a video that he claimed implicates Israel in the attack.

“In line with its mandate, the Office of the Prosecutor has requested the Lebanese authorities to provide all the information in possession of Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah,” the Special Tribunal for Lebanon stated in a news release.

“This request includes the video material that was shown on television during the press conference, as well any other material that would be of assistance to the Office of the Prosecutor in unveiling the truth,” it added.

The Office of the Prosecutor also invited Mr. Nasrallah to “use his authority to facilitate its investigation.”

The Tribunal is an independent body that was set up in The Hague in the Netherlands, following a probe by an independent international commission after an earlier UN mission found that Lebanon’s own inquiry into the massive car bombing in February 2005 was seriously flawed and that Syria was primarily responsible for the political tensions that preceded the attack.

The investigation of the murders continues under the guidance of the Tribunal’s Prosecutor, Daniel Bellemare, who reported in December that the probe “is making progress and proceeding at full pace.”

He stressed that the ultimate goal of the Tribunal, beyond finding out the truth and ensuring that justice is done, is to help Lebanon and its people in their continued efforts to further promote the rule of law and fight impunity.