BAN KI-MOON CONDEMNS LATEST MURDER OF LEBANESE LAWMAKER

BAN KI-MOON CONDEMNS LATEST MURDER OF LEBANESE LAWMAKER
New York, Sep 19 2007 8:00PM
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has condemned today's assassination of a Lebanese lawmaker, who was killed along with at least eight others after an apparent car bomb attack in the capital, Beirut.

In a <"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2007/sgsm11167.doc.htm">statement issued by his spokesperson, Mr. Ban said he was "shocked by the brutal assassination" of Antoine Ghanem and offered his condolences to the families of all the people killed.

"Such acts of terrorism aim at undermining Lebanon's stability and are unacceptable," the statement said. "Lebanon has suffered far too many such attempts."

Mr. Ban urged all Lebanese to show "calm and restraint at this very critical time and to allow judicial procedures to take their course" and stressed the need for continued dialogue within the country.

The assassination took place the same day that the Security Council received a briefing from UN Legal Counsel Nicolas Michel on the progress being made towards establishing the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, which is being set up to prosecute those responsible for the February 2005 assassination – also during a car bomb attack – of the country's former prime minister Rafiq Hariri.

In a <"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2007/sc9119.doc.htm">statement to the press after the closed-door briefing, Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert of France, which holds the rotating Council presidency this month, said members welcomed the progress achieved so far and encouraged Mr. Ban to continue to undertake the steps and measures necessary to formally establish the Special Tribunal.

Once it is established, it will be up to the judges to determine whether other political killings in Lebanon between October 2004 and December 2005 were connected to Mr. Hariri's assassination and could therefore be dealt with by the Special Tribunal.

Any political killings that have occurred since December 2005 could also be dealt with, but only with the consent of the Security Council, Mr. Michel later told reporters.

He said the UN was making good progress towards appointing the judges and prosecutors who will serve on the Special Tribunal, adding that this is extremely important as they will be "the public face" of the court.

According to the Tribunal's statute, the chambers will consist of one international pre-trial judge; three judges to serve in the trial chamber (one Lebanese and two international); five judges to serve in the appeals chamber (two Lebanese and three international); and two alternate judges (one Lebanese and one international).

The judges of the trial chamber and those of the appeals chamber will then each elect a presiding judge to conduct the proceedings in their chamber, with the presiding judge of the appeals chamber serving as president of the Tribunal.

Mr. Michel also said it was a priority to find a successor to Serge Brammertz, the head of the International Independent Investigation Commission (IIIC), which is probing the Hariri assassination and other political killings after a UN mission found Lebanon's earlier investigations flawed.

Mr. Brammertz has indicated he does not plan to stay on beyond the end of the year, Mr. Michel noted, underscoring the need to assure continuity by appointing someone as commissioner who could then become the prosecutor of the Special Tribunal once it starts operations.

The Tribunal is forecast to cost $35 million to run in its first 12 months, followed by $45 million in its second year and $40 million in its third year. Some 51 per cent will be met by UN Member States, and the remaining 49 per cent from the Lebanese Government.

Mr. Michel said the UN has already received indications from several governments that they are ready and willing to contribute to the costs of operating the court. He also noted that the UN and the Netherlands, which has agreed to host the Tribunal, are examining several potential sites.

Asked whether the IIIC would investigate today's assassination, Mr. Michel said it was up to the Lebanese Prime Minister to send a request to Mr. Ban, who can then forward it to the Security Council, which determines whether the killing or attack should be included in the work of the Commission.
2007-09-19 00:00:00.000

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