The UN International Tribunal to try Hariri's Assassins

remind me to weap later :dj:

Of course they are going to panic.

Just like how they panicked before the UN reports would come out and to relieve their frustration, they would carry out a bombing somewhere in Lebanon...

NAAAAAAAAAAAAAH,i wish lebanon never existed between israel and syria,this is UNFAIR

Who do Lebanese hate more, Israeli's or Syrians?

Very Controversial said:

Who do Lebanese hate more, Israeli's or Syrians?

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Difficult question, especially since it's for different reasons. It depends on the person's political affiliation really.

What I will say though is that since Hariri's assassination, hatred towards the Syria skyrocketed. But that doesn't mean hatred against Israel declined by those same individuals.

Since the July War, hatred towards Israel skyrocketed. But again, that doesn't mean hatred towards Syria declined.

Even Syria and Hezbollah's strongest critics have slammed Israel since the war. Just look at how outspoken Prime Minister Fouad Siniora has been against Israel, despite the fact that he is a well known critic of Syria and Hezbollah. He was a very close friend of Rafic Hariri.

While now there is a lot of division and tension in the country over Hezbollah and the outcomes of the war, the war did cause unity among all Lebanese during the war because of the relentless and indiscriminate destruction and killing Israel was doing to the country.

The Syrians are cowards when they bomb Lebanon, because they hide and deny involvement. At least the Israelis openly admit bombing us and sometimes warn us in advance.

Honestly, I felt safer during the Israeli war than I did during the Syrian terror campaign of 2005 (which is NOT over yet). This was mainly because I resided in Beirut but also because Syrian bombings could take place at any time anywhere without any warning - cant say the same for Israeli terror.

Syrian Goverment are a bunch of autocratics assad is a ruthless and selfish man trying to wipe out anyone who questions him and refuses to listin to him his father was just as wrost !!!!

Beirut! said:

The Syrians are cowards when they bomb Lebanon, because they hide and deny involvement. At least the Israelis openly admit bombing us and sometimes warn us in advance.

Honestly, I felt safer during the Israeli war than I did during the Syrian terror campaign of 2005 (which is NOT over yet). This was mainly because I resided in Beirut but also because Syrian bombings could take place at any time anywhere without any warning - cant say the same for Israeli terror.

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I can partly see where you are coming from, especially since one of the Syrian bombings occured very close to where several of my relatives live.

During Hariri's assassination, my uncle was working in his office which is really close to the assassination site. The windows in his office were shattered and the shockwave ended up messing up the door, so he was locked in his office. They had to break down the door.

However, I don't agree about feeling safer during the Israeli bombings. My uncle who has to drive daily from his apartment in 3aramoun to his ph armacy on Mar Elias.

I'm not sure if you know, but 3aramoun is just east of the airport in the mountains. Israel bombed the airport several times as well as the roads around it. Infact, one of the times that Israel bombed the airport, he was on the highway driving do work. He ended up moving is family out of the apartment in 3aramoun and stated with some relatives in Beirut because of the danger. I was really worried about him.

Don't forget that Israel bombed roads and bridges all over the country and not just in the south and southern Beirut.

Remember that they bombed the famous bridge that goes by Casino du Liban that dates back to the 1950's and the Fidar bridge in Byblos, the 2nd largest bridge in Lebanon after the Mdeirj bridge (which they also bombed). These were two targets that nobody ever suspected would be hit, but they hit them. They even bombed roads in the Cedars area.

I have a few relatives who evacuated Lebanon through Syria and as you know, Israel was bombing the roads in and out of Syria.

One of my aunts and her son were on a road that got bombed one hour after they passed through it, just one hour.

Overall, now that I look back at the July war, I don't think I have ever been so concerned about my family members as during the July war. The Syrian bombings did very much keep me on the toes though, especially because of the question when they would bomb and where it would be.

^^ Oh yes I know, I was only speaking about myself personally. At first I was scared living in Damour when our bridge was hit in front of me but I moved to Beirut and I was mainly there during the war (there was no real danger from Israel), but being in Beirut during 2005 was scarier since any parked car around me could have blown up at any minute and I was actually at Monot during that particular bombing.

^^I can see why you were concerned, especially since you hung out around Monot.

I just hate both Equally,i don't hate syrian pple who really see lebanon as an independent state.i consider Israel and syria as eternal enemies to lebanon.israel don't want lebanon to exist as it is now,as a free democratic country(israel only want to show the world that arabs are backwards and radicals and stuff like that) to justify its acts against arabs.Syria wants a lebanon that just follow her and her choices.i.e:wants lebanon part of syria
BOTH SUCK BIG TIME.

^^ Very good points!

Yislam hal tem hassoun!!! THEY BOTH SUCK!!!

Altho personally I have nothing against both country's people ... its just the governments/policies that they both have towards lebanon that make me cringe!

Hassoun said:

I just hate both Equally,i don't hate syrian pple who really see lebanon as an independent state.i consider Israel and syria as eternal enemies to lebanon.israel don't want lebanon to exist as it is now,as a free democratic country(israel only want to show the world that arabs are backwards and radicals and stuff like that) to justify its acts against arabs.Syria wants a lebanon that just follow her and her choices.i.e:wants lebanon part of syria
BOTH SUCK BIG TIME.

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i agree with you

Syria hires British law firm for Hariri assassination inquiry


Hugh Macleod in Damascus and Ewen MacAskill
Saturday November 4, 2006

Guardian

The Syrian government has hired a well-known British law firm to advise it over the assassination of the former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri.

Matrix Chambers, which has a strong reputation for fighting for human rights and whose lawyers include Cherie Booth, Philippe Sands and Clare Montgomery, was taken on earlier this year after a UN investigation linked members of the Syrian intelligence services to the killing. The UN has threatened Syria with sanctions if it does not cooperate with the investigation.

The firm has represented other dictatorships in the past, notably the former Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet in the House of Lords case during 1998-9.

Ms Montgomery QC, who is leading the team advising Damascus with Mr Sands QC, declined to comment yesterday.

The firm is coy about the relationship with Syria, in part because of the possible damage to its reputation from association with a government whose inner circle has been accused of involvement in murder, which has a poor overall human rights record, and which provides support to militant groups in the Middle East such as the Lebanese-based militia Hizbullah. The small band of dissidents and human rights activists in Damascus criticised Matrix.

The law firm's involvement emerged in the week during which a senior British diplomat made a secret trip to Damascus to explore whether the president, Bashar Assad, is interested in ending his country's estrangement from the west. Mr Sands, who is professor of law at University College London and author of a book challenging the legitimacy of the Iraq war, also visited Mr Assad earlier this year.

The UK government believes Mr Assad is keen to establish good relations with the west but is caught up in faction fighting between those who, like him, favour negotiation, and others who have been emboldened by Hizbullah's success against Israel this summer.

Relations between the west and Syria have been bad for decades but deteriorated sharply after Mr Hariri was killed by a bomb in Beirut in February last year.

Matrix is pressing the Syrian government to comply with UN demands to co-operate with the investigation. The firm is involved primarily with Syria's international obligations rather than the details of who was behind the killing. Another group of British lawyers is preparing the defence case for five Syrian security officials identified by the UN as suspects.

Matrix was chosen by the Syrian embassy in London. Sami Khiyami, the ambassador, in an interview with the Guardian earlier this year, described the UK legal system as "extremely advanced and the closest to international law".

UNITED NATIONS
UN Moves on Lebanon Court Proceed Despite Russia


Western powers formally put their plan for a court to prosecute the murder of a former Lebanese prime minister.

Western powers formally put their plan for a court to prosecute the murder of a former Lebanese prime minister before the U.N. Security Council on Friday, but Russia raised objections to its compulsory nature.
Sponsors the United States, Britain and France played down the Russian concerns and said they still expected their resolution setting up the special court, a highly divisive issue in Lebanon, to pass by next week.

But U.S. and French envoys said they would amend the resolution to allow a short period before it went into effect in a gesture toward what they said was the probably forlorn hope that the Lebanese would bury their differences over it.

The resolution responds to a Lebanese government request but the country's parliament has not approved the plan because its speaker, an opposition figure who disputes the legitimacy of the government, has refused to convene the chamber.

At the heart of the dispute are Lebanon's ties with its larger neighbor Syria. Pro-government Lebanese leaders accuse Syria of killing former premier Rafik al-Hariri and 22 other people with a bomb in 2005. Damascus denies involvement.

Despite warnings by Lebanon's pro-Syrian president, Emile Lahoud, and others that setting up the court could trigger a fresh wave of violence there, Western leaders say it is essential as a matter of principle to try Hariri's murderers.

Western countries have shrugged off suggestions that bombings and fighting in Lebanon this week aim to derail the court. "We should not be intimidated by what is happening today in Lebanon," said France's U.N. ambassador, Jean-Marc de la Sabliere.

After discussions among the Security Council's 15 members on Friday, Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said Moscow objected to the draft resolution's reference to Chapter 7 of the U.N. charter, which would make the court mandatory.

"We don't think it's necessary," he told reporters, saying another clause in the U.N. charter made all Security Council resolutions binding anyway.

"We are also proposing ... a grace period, that after the resolution is adopted, it will enter into force after a certain period of time, in the hope and expectation that before that period ends they will be able to ratify it in Lebanon."

THREAT TO PEACE

But Western diplomats said inclusion of the Chapter 7 reference was non-negotiable. U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said past U.N. actions on Hariri's assassination had termed it "a threat to international peace and security," thus requiring Chapter 7 enforcement.

"We believe that we are heading towards a vote on that resolution early next week," Khalilzad said. But he indicated the sponsors would be open to a clause allowing for a delay of "a few days" in implementing it, once it is passed.

He said big-power envoys would take another look at the text in talks later on Friday.

With U.N. headquarters in New York closed on Monday for the U.S. Memorial Day holiday, the earliest that the resolution could be adopted is now probably Wednesday, diplomats said.

Western diplomats have said throughout that they do not expect Russia to veto the resolution, but they speculated that it could abstain. The United States, Britain, France, Russia and China have veto powers on the council.

Diplomats say the resolution would establish the court but not spell out how it would operate. Key details, including where it would be based, remain to be decided.

Im a little confused about some parts being under chap 7 and others not..how can this be?Sounds like delay tactics and serving in the terrorists hand..

PASSED!!!!!!!

The UN passed, under chapter 7, the tribunal for Hariri's assasins. the vote was 10-0 with 5 abstentions. It gives a grace period until June 10th for the chance of the Lebanese parliament to convene and approve it. If not it will fo into force on that date!

- Saad Hairi (tears in his eyes) and Siniora imediatly called for the Lebanese to unite behind it.

- Fireworks immediatly lit the sky as candlelit ceremonys commenced amid even tighter security in place on Weds.

^^ was anyone really surprised??? yalla mabrook everyone, inshalla this is a step in the right direction