Ban appoints prosecutor and judge for UN-backed tribunal for Lebanon

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today appointed Norman Farrell of Canada as the prosecutor of the United Nations-backed independent tribunal set up to try those responsible for the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri.

Mr. Farrell replaces Daniel Bellemare, who has completed his term as prosecutor of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL). Mr. Farrell is currently deputy prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

Mr. Ban expressed his gratitude to Mr. Bellemare for his leadership in advancing the work of the Special Tribunal.

The Secretary-General also appointed Daniel David Ntanda Nsereko of Uganda as an international judge of the appeals chamber of the special tribunal. Mr. Nsereko is currently a judge in the appeals division of the International Criminal Court (ICC). He replaces the late Antonio Cassese, who was also a former president of the STL.

“In announcing these appointments, the Secretary-General once again reiterates the commitment of the United Nations to the efforts of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon to uncover the truth regarding the terrorist attack that took the lives of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri and 22 others, as well as other connected attacks, so as to bring those responsible to justice and send a message that impunity will not be tolerated,” said a statement issued by his spokesperson.

The STL is an independent court created at the request of the Lebanese Government, with a mandate issued by the Security Council.

Mr. Hariri and the 22 others were killed on 14 February 2005 after a massive car bomb exploded as his motorcade passed through central Beirut.

Salim Jamil Ayyash, Mustafa Amine Badreddine, Hussein Hassan Oneissi and Assad Hassan Sabra, all Lebanese nationals, have been indicted over the killing. They will be tried in absentia after the STL determined earlier this month that all reasonable attempts had been made to inform the four men of the charges they face and to bring them before the court.