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Trial Opens Into Killing of Lebanese Prime Minister Trial Opens Into Killing of Lebanese Prime Minister
(about 2 hours later)
LONDON — Almost nine years after Rafik Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister, was killed by a truck bomb, an international tribunal opened hearings into the case on Thursday in a courtroom in the Netherlands with lawyers and judges clustered around a mock-up of the crime scene on the Beirut waterfront.LONDON — Almost nine years after Rafik Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister, was killed by a truck bomb, an international tribunal opened hearings into the case on Thursday in a courtroom in the Netherlands with lawyers and judges clustered around a mock-up of the crime scene on the Beirut waterfront.
But notably absent from the Special Tribunal on Lebanon, in a former spy agency office on the outskirts of The Hague, were the four accused who have been shielded from arrest and prosecution by the powerful Lebanese Shiite Muslim group Hezbollah that supports President Bashar al-Assad of Syria in the civil war against mainly Sunni insurgents.. The prosecution likened the result of the attack to a “man-made hell.”
But notably absent from the Special Tribunal on Lebanon, in a former spy agency office on the outskirts of The Hague, were the four accused who have been shielded from arrest and prosecution by the powerful Lebanese Shiite Muslim group Hezbollah that supports President Bashar al-Assad of Syria in the civil war against mainly Sunni insurgents.
The trial of Assad Hassan Sabra, Salim Jamil Ayyash, Hussein Hassan Oneissi and Mustafa Amine Badreddine represents the first time that an international tribunal has tried defendants in their absence since the Nuremberg trials after World War II. Even if they are convicted, the four are entitled to a new trial if they are apprehended.The trial of Assad Hassan Sabra, Salim Jamil Ayyash, Hussein Hassan Oneissi and Mustafa Amine Badreddine represents the first time that an international tribunal has tried defendants in their absence since the Nuremberg trials after World War II. Even if they are convicted, the four are entitled to a new trial if they are apprehended.
The tribunal has spent about $325 million in preparation for the hearings into the attack that killed Mr. Hariri and 22 others on Feb. 14, 2005. The tribunal has spent about $325 million in preparation for the hearings into the attack that killed Mr. Hariri and 22 others on Feb. 14, 2005 in an assassination that convulsed the region and inspired huge protests against Syria’s influence in Lebanon.
But the trial opened under inauspicious circumstances. Even as the case began, a car bomb exploded in a northeastern Lebanese town close to the Syrian border, killing three people — the latest in a series of apparently sectarian attacks. The trial itself has come to be seen as a new fault line in the region’s confrontations as the bloodletting of Syria’s civil war spills into Lebanon. The trial opened under inauspicious circumstances. Even as it began, a car bomb exploded in a northeastern Lebanese town close to the Syrian border, killing three people — the latest in a series of apparently sectarian attacks. The trial itself has come to be seen as a new fault line in the region’s confrontations as the bloodletting of Syria’s civil war spills into Lebanon, exacerbating deep-seated divisions that characterize much of the Middle East.
The prosecution said on Thursday that Mr. Hariri had been traveling in a convoy of six vehicles and was in an armor-plated Mercedes. Some of the cars were fitted with jamming devices to prevent the triggering of explosives by mobile phone signals. The presence of those electronic devices supported the argument that the explosives were detonated manually, the prosecution said.The prosecution said on Thursday that Mr. Hariri had been traveling in a convoy of six vehicles and was in an armor-plated Mercedes. Some of the cars were fitted with jamming devices to prevent the triggering of explosives by mobile phone signals. The presence of those electronic devices supported the argument that the explosives were detonated manually, the prosecution said.
The court was shown CCTV images of a white van moving across Beirut as the convoy set off toward the St. Georges Hotel building on the seafront. The court was shown CCTV images of a white Mitsubishi van moving across Beirut as the convoy set off toward the St. Georges Hotel building on the seafront.
The van is seen moving slowly past the building shortly before the convoy drives by, traveling in the same direction. Then the prosecution showed a photograph of the scene of the blast and the huge crater it created, measuring around 35 feet across and six feet deep.The van is seen moving slowly past the building shortly before the convoy drives by, traveling in the same direction. Then the prosecution showed a photograph of the scene of the blast and the huge crater it created, measuring around 35 feet across and six feet deep.
“The attackers used an extraordinary amount of high explosives, far more than necessary,” the prosecution said. “It is not that the perpetrators did not care if they killed their fellow citizens. They intended to do so.” “The attackers used an extraordinary amount of high explosives, far more than was required to kill their main target,” the prosecution said. “It is not that the perpetrators did not care if they killed their fellow citizens. They intended to do so.”
The suicide bomber was “blown into tiny pieces” by the blast, the prosecution added.The suicide bomber was “blown into tiny pieces” by the blast, the prosecution added.
The attack took place between the St. Georges Hotel and the adjacent Byblos building, in “a man-made canyon” that concentrated the force of the blast, the prosecution said. The result was a “man-made hell.” The attack took place between the St. Georges Hotel and the adjacent Byblos building, in “a man-made canyon” that concentrated the force of the blast, the prosecution said. The result was described by one prosecutor, Alexander Milne, as a “man-made hell.”
The aim, said Norman Farrell, the lead prosecutor, was “to send a terrifying message and to cause panic among the population of Beirut and Lebanon.”
Using records from more than 50 cellphones, prosecutors plan to describe in detail how the accused meticulously tracked Mr. Hariri’s movements for months and procured the van that detonated as his convoy left Parliament en route to his residence.Using records from more than 50 cellphones, prosecutors plan to describe in detail how the accused meticulously tracked Mr. Hariri’s movements for months and procured the van that detonated as his convoy left Parliament en route to his residence.
The prosecution contends that the four absent defendants are supporters of Hezbollah, whose leaders have dismissed the court in The Hague as evidence of a broader Western conspiracy against their organization and urged Lebanese to withhold cooperation with it. The prosecution contends that the four absent defendants are supporters of Hezbollah, whose leaders have dismissed the court in The Hague as evidence of a broader Western conspiracy against their organization and urged Lebanese to withhold cooperation with it. The defendants face charges including premeditated murder and terrorism. If convicted they could face sentences of life imprisonment.
In Beirut, news photographs showed supporters of Mr. Hariri gathering under a huge billboard bearing his portrait and the word “Justice.”
Hundreds of prosecution witnesses are expected to be called and the trial will take months and possibly much longer.