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- 23 oct 2010
Hezbollah urges STL misleaders probe
Former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri
Hezbollah has stressed the need to investigate the case of false witnesses, who misled a UN tribunal on the assassination of Lebanon's ex-premier Rafiq Hariri.
Deputy Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem said on Friday that a close examination of the case of those who bore false witness to the United Nations Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) would prevent disunity in the country, ISNA reported.
The UN Special Tribunal for Lebanon was set up by the world body and the Lebanese government in May 2007 to investigate the case.
The Hezbollah official made the comments during a meeting with Wiam Wahhab, the head of the Lebanese Tayyar al-Tawhid movement.
For his part, Wahhab identified the STL as a politicized court and called on Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri to settle the issue.
On Wednesday, Lebanon's government postponed a study of the case of the UN tribunal false witnesses.
Western-backed parties in Lebanon accused Syria and the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement of involvement in a February 2005 explosion in Beirut that killed Rafiq Hariri along with more than 20 others, a claim vehemently rejected by both Damascus and Hezbollah.
Hezbollah categorically rejects the allegations and has called the tribunal an "Israeli project."
Former Lebanese commander Jamil al-Sayyed said recently that Hariri's death was being exploited to fight Syria and the Lebanese resistance movement, Hezbollah.
Early in September, Saad Hariri admitted to have wrongly accused Syria of being behind his father's assassination and acknowledged that the accusations were politically charged.
Hezbollah and Syria believe a UN-backed tribunal charged with investigating Hariri's killing was marred by witnesses who gave false information.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/147829.html
4 mar 2012, 12:12 , Respect -
Maria 4 mar 2012, 12:13 , Respect -
Maria 28 oct 2010
'Israel benefited Rafiq Hariri murder'
Major General Amos Yadlin
The former head of Israel's Military Intelligence says Israel benefited from the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri.
Major General Amos Yadlin said on Wednesday that Israel has been able to launch more than one operation in Lebanon following Hariri's killing.
In 2005, Hariri was killed in a massive car bombing in the capital city of Beirut.
He also admitted that Tel Aviv carried out the terror assassination of Hezbollah's commander Imad Mughniyeh in Syria two years ago.
The former official noted that Israel restored a huge number of espionage networks inside Lebanon and managed to assassinate Mughniyeh through the very same spy rings.
Yadlin claimed Mughniyeh's murder helped Israel enter a new stage in its conflict with Hezbollah, adding that the Israeli Military Intelligence should proceed with such plans in Lebanon.
Earlier reports had revealed that chief of Israeli spy agency Mossad Meir Dagan personally planned the assassination at orders by former Israeli premier Ehud Olmert.
Mughniyeh, who was one of the most prominent Hezbollah figures, was assassinated in a car bomb explosion in the Syrian capital on February 12, 2008.
Hezbollah held the Israeli regime responsible for the assassination of Mughniyeh, but the regime's officials at the time denied having any role in the assassination.
http://ht.ly/307lS
Hezbollah: STL spied for West, Israel
Hezbollah's Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah
Hezbollah says the UN tribunal, investigating the former Lebanese premier's assassination, has been channeling data on the country to the West and Israel.
Under the guise of solving the murder, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) has been penetrating "every single sector" within the country to obtain information, the Lebanese resistance movement's Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Thursday.
It would then direct the data to the Western intelligence services and Tel Aviv, he added, addressing the faithful in the Lebanese capital, Beirut.
Former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri was killed alongside more than 20 other people in a massive car bombing in Beirut on February 14, 2005.
The STL was subsequently set up by the United Nations and the Lebanese government in May 2007 to investigate the assassination. The court is expected to announce its findings by the end of 2010.
Nasrallah said in July that he had been informed by the slain leader's son and successor, Saad Hariri, that the court "will accuse some undisciplined [Hezbollah] members."
He has rejected the allegation and warned that the plot was part of "a dangerous project that is targeting the resistance."
In an August speech, Nasrallah presented evidence proving that Israel had masterminded the assassination. The televised address featured video materials, captured by Israeli unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), as well as recorded confessions by Israeli fifth columnists, substantiating that Tel Aviv had been behind the killing.
Nasrallah said the investigators had been infiltrating deep into the country even before the tribunal took its current form.
Why does the investigators want "medical files of women" who are related to members of Hezbollah?, Nasrallah questioned after exposing that the team had also asked for more than 7,000 of such files.
He said the intrusion impinged on the honor of the Lebanese.
"We always know the magnitude" of the scheme, the resistance leader said, but warned, "We stop here."
He said the movement has been silent on the matter so that it is not accused of disrupting the investigation and causing tension within the country.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/148695.html
4 mar 2012, 12:13 , Respect -
Maria 29 oct 2010
UN-backed court criticizes Hezbollah boycott call
Hezbollah's Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah
International Tribunal probing assassination of Lebanese statesmen condemns Shiite militant group's call to shun investigation, claiming it is an 'attempt to obstruct justice'.
A call by Shiite Lebanese militant group Hezbollah to boycott a UN-backed investigation into the 2005 assassination of statesman Rafik al-Hariri is an "attempt to obstruct justice," the tribunal said on Friday.
Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah urged Lebanese on Thursday to halt cooperation with the inquiry and accused its investigators of sending information to Israel, the latest escalation in a war of words over the inquiry which threatens to plunge the country into more turmoil.
Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and Syria, stepped up its campaign against the tribunal after reports emerged in recent months that the court's prosecutor may indict members of the group, possibly early next year.
"Any call to boycott the tribunal is an attempt to obstruct justice," an STL spokesperson told Reuters. "The Special Tribunal for Lebanon will continue to rely on the full cooperation of the Lebanese government and the international community, according to its statute."
Nasrallah spoke out after two international investigators were forced by a crowd of women to leave a doctor's clinic in southern Beirut, a bastion of Hezbollah, where they had made an appointment to review files.
The tribunal condemned what it called an "attack on its staff" and it would not be deterred from its investigation.
Hezbollah, part of a fragile national unity government, has been trying to pressure Sunni Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri, Rafik's son, into repudiating the tribunal, which the group considers a tool of US and Israeli policy.
Nasrallah said it was scandalous that investigators had sought the medical files of women at the clinic, and warned that any further cooperation with the tribunal would be considered "an aggression against the resistance (Hezbollah)".
The UN Security Council set up the tribunal in May 2007 and it has yet to indict anyone in Hariri's assassination.
UN investigators had first implicated senior Syrian and pro-Syrian Lebanese officials. But last year four pro-Syrian Lebanese generals who had been arrested by Lebanese authorities at the investigators' behest were released without charge after the tribunal decided they had no part in the killing.
Syria and Hezbollah have both denied any involvement in Hariri's assassination.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3976675,00.html
4 mar 2012, 12:13 , Respect -
Maria 1 nov 2010
Aoun urges agreement on false witnesses
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri (R) speaking with the country's Christian leader Michel Aoun.
Leader of Lebanon's Free Patriotic Movement Michel Aoun has warned against the failure of talks on the false witnesses in former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri's assassination case.
"If Cabinet fails, there will be no dialog on Thursday (November 4)," Naharnet news portal quoted Aoun as saying in reference to a Wednesday cabinet meeting on the issue.
"All possibilities are open" if the talks fail, he warned. "The crisis is highly problematic and unless they remove the causes of discord, they'd better not (engage) in talks," he added.
Aoun warned against procrastination on the false witnesses' issue, saying it was "not acceptable" to delay the prosecution of those who gave false testimony on Hariri's murder.
"If the other (political) camp did not refer the false witnesses' issue to the Judicial Council, this means they are involved in the false witnesses' issue," he said.
On February 14, 2005, Lebanon's ex-premier Rafiq Hariri was murdered along with more than 20 others in a massive bomb explosion in the Lebanese capital, Beirut.
Sources affiliated with the Western-backed March 14 coalition, which also includes Prime Minister Sad Hariri's al-Mustaqbal party, accused Syria and Hezbollah resistance movement of masterminding and carrying out the killing.
Both Damascus and the Lebanese resistance movement vehemently rejected the charges.
In early September, Hariri finally acknowledged that he made a mistake to accuse Syria of the murder of his father. "That was a political accusation, and that political accusation is over," he stated.
"There is a (UN) court that is doing its job, and we, for our part, must reassess what happened," he went on to say.
However, Hezbollah has boycotted the UN-backed tribunal charged with probing Hariri's assassination, arguing the panel has been politicized and poisoned with false testimony by pro-Western elements.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/149162.html
4 mar 2012, 12:13 , Respect -
Maria 2 nov 2010
Report: Hezbollah getting ready to take over Lebanon
Al-Sharq al-Awsat newspaper says Shiite group, together with other elements, planning to take over Lebanon as international tribunal prepares to issue ruling on Hariri assassination.
Hezbollah is gearing up to take over Lebanon ahead of an international tribunal's ruling on the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. The London-based al-Sharq al-Awsat newspaper reported Tuesday that the Islamist group has been in contact with Shiite group Amal and pro-Syrian organizations in Lebanon in order to set a plan to seize control of the country after the court's ruling.
A source close to Hezbollah told the paper that the plan, which is focused on Beirut and south Lebanon, "Will end Saad Hariri and the Saudis' tenure in Lebanon for good." It is estimated that the UN court will place Hezbollah responsible for the Hariri's assassination.
On Monday, the Al Akhbar daily reported that "key element in the opposition (i.e Hezbollah) is holding an electronic discourse with Lebanese elements."
According to al-Sharq al-Awsat, the parties discussed the division of areas between the various forces in a way which will allow them to seize control of their respective areas when the time comes.
It was also reported that as part of preparations, Beirut will be divided into three military zones.
'No one can predict future'
A senior Hezbollah source refused to confirm or deny the report but said, "Everyone knows that the state in the Lebanon is a reason for concern, because all of the opportunities to 'solve the situation' have thus far failed.
"It would not be useful to discuss scenarios in the media, however no one can predict what will happen in the future," he added.
The Amal movement denied the report and said it was not in a position "to make plans for conflicts."
Last week, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah called on the Lebanese people not to cooperate with IJC clerks after they visited a gynecological practice near Beirut and were attacked by 150 women who snatched one of their cases containing investigation materials.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3978550,00.html
4 mar 2012, 12:13 , Respect -
Maria 3 nov 2010
US pledges $10mn for Hariri tribunal
US Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice
The United States has announced another $10 million contribution to support a UN tribunal investigating the murder of former Lebanese premier Rafiq Hariri.
"We are confident that the work of the tribunal can continue to help deter further violence and put an end to a tragic era of impunity for political assassinations in Lebanon," US Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said in a statement on Wednesday.
The new donation would bring the total level of aid for the UN panel to $30 million since its inception in 2007.
"Efforts to discredit, hinder, or influence the tribunal's work must not be tolerated," Rice said in a statement.
Rice said she had "full confidence" in the ability of the tribunal to carry out its investigation into the murder.
The tribunal is at the center of mounting tensions in Lebanon.
According to unconfirmed reports, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon plans to charge some Hezbollah members in connection with the assassination of Hariri, who was killed in a massive car bomb explosion on February 14, 2005 that also killed 22 other people.
The resistance movement has criticized the investigation process calling it politically motivated.
Hezbollah has repeatedly denied any involvement in the Hariri assassination, saying it does not recognize the tribunal because it is an "Israeli project" aimed at undermining the resistance movement.
The resistance movement also accuses the tribunal of basing its investigations on testimonies provided by "false witnesses."
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/149544.html
STL indictment report rejected
Former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri
Lebanese sources have denied reports claiming that the UN tribunal investigating the assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri will issue indictment next month.
Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) Outreach Officer Wajed Ramadan on Wednesday described recent media reports quoting STL President Judge Antonio Cassese as saying that the tribunal is set to issue an indictment in December as "false," Naharnet reported.
Ramadan went on to say that Cassese had told reporters that the UN's chief investigator Daniel Bellemare will release the indictment "when it is ready" and that he does not know when that will happen.
According to unconfirmed reports, the UN tribunal plans to charge some members of Lebanon's resistance movement Hezbollah in connection with the assassination of Hariri, who was killed alongside with 22 other people in a massive car bomb explosion on February 14, 2005.
Hezbollah has repeatedly denied any involvement in the killing and has described the tribunal as an "Israeli project" trying to undermine the resistance movement.
The resistance movement has also accused the tribunal of basing its investigations on testimonies provided by "false witnesses."
In August, Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah presented a series of documents proving Israel's involvement in Hariri's murder.
The evidence included footage taken by Israeli drones of the routes frequented by Hariri prior to his assassination as well as recorded confessions by Israeli fifth columnists substantiating that the killing of the late Lebanese prime minister was carried out on orders from Tel Aviv.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/149518.html
4 mar 2012, 12:13 , Respect -
Maria 4 nov 2010
Lebanon opposition boycotts dialogue
Lebanese opposition boycotts a session of national dialogue, protesting delays in talks on the emergence of false witnesses in former Premier Rafiq Hariri's assassination case.
National dialogue, first held in September 2008, aims to rally support for a common defense strategy.
A meeting on Wednesday between the Lebanese ministers planned to address the alleged testimonies, which reportedly misled a United Nations tribunal investigating the murder.
The Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), Marada Movement, Lebanese Democratic Party and Syrian Social Nationalist Party, however, said the leadership had deliberately postponed the discussion, Lebanese portal Naharnet reported on Thursday.
Hariri was killed along with more than 20 other people in a massive bombing in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, on February 14, 2005.
The UN Special Tribunal for Lebanon was set up by the world body and the Lebanese government in May 2007 to probe the incident.
Referring to the alleged perjury and the meeting, FPM's leader Michel Aoun had earlier warned that "the crisis is highly problematic and unless they remove the causes of discord, they'd better not [engage] in talks."
"If the other [political] camp did not refer the false witnesses' issue to the Judicial Council, this means they are involved in the false witnesses' issue," he said.
The opposition parties said their boycott was a "direct message" to President Michel Sleiman and the victim's son, incumbent Premier Saad Hariri, whom they held responsible for the postponement.
http://www.presstv.com/detail/149656.html
Fears rise over Hezbollah reaction if indicted in Hariri murder
BEIRUT (DPA) -- Members of the Western-backed ruling majority in Lebanon said Thursday they feared the Hezbollah-led opposition may try to destabilize the country if its members are indicted in the 2005 assassination of former prime minister Rafiq Hariri.
Hezbollah, the powerful Shiite Muslim militant group backed by Syria and Iran, and its allies boycotted the National Dialogue session Thursday which was due to discuss the country's defence strategy and the future of Hezbollah's arms.
Tensions have been rising after unconfirmed reports said the UN tribunal stands to indict some members of Hezbollah for Hariri's murder by the end of November. Nothing has been confirmed by The Hague-based Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
Members of the majority backed by Western powers and regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia criticized Hezbollah for refusing to cooperate with the tribunal.
Parliamentary deputy Sami Gemayel, a member of the majority, reiterated his support for the STL, saying it remains "a red line" that should not be overstepped.
"Lebanon has two choices: either the criminals remain free, or they are brought to justice so that the country can have peace," he said.
A report in the Saudi newspaper Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat as well as media outlets loyal to Hezbollah quoted sources close to Hezbollah as saying it could seize control of Beirut and surround major government institutions if the indictments are issued against its members.
The current crisis has prompted fears of a renewed outbreak of sectarian violence pitting Hariri's mainly Sunni supporters against the Hezbollah, who have the main military force in Lebanon.
A government source said that "what we may witness from now until the indictments are more boycotts from the part of the opposition that will help plunge the country into deeper political turmoil."
"Today's boycott of the National Dialogue was the first step," the source said.
The National Dialogue started last year between the Lebanese factions to discuss and try to resolve the major political issues between the two sides.
The March 14th coalition backed by Hariri has condemned what it called an "intimidation campaign through the call for boycott of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and the international investigators."
Rafiq Hariri's death in 2005 led to a wave of protests, forcing neighboring Syria, which had been the dominant power in Lebanon since the end of the civil war, to withdraw its military forces from Lebanon, because it was originally blamed for Hariri's murder.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=330951
Hezbollah: UN, a tool in Israeli hands
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon
Hezbollah says the UN in "taking the side of the executioner" by blaming Lebanon for deadly clashes, which preceded an Israeli invasion earlier in the year.
On August 3, an Israeli patrol unit breached a border fence and moved into the Adeissah village in southern Lebanon, prompting light fire from the country's soldiers.
Confrontation subsequently erupted with the Israeli forces using machineguns and tank shells on Army bases and local residences.
Three Lebanese soldiers, a Lebanese journalist and a top Israeli officer died during the exchange of fire -- the worst of its kind since Israel's 2006 war on Lebanon, which killed about 1,200 Lebanese.
Commenting on Monday on the world body's Resolution 1701, which has obliged Israel to keep out of Lebanon following the 33-Day War, the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon held Beirut responsible for the incident.
The Lebanese resistance movement, Hezbollah reacted to the account in a Wednesday statement, calling it "completely biased," Lebanese newspaper the Daily Star reported.
"Hezbollah believes that this decision was written by an American hand using Israeli ink," read the statement.
The move, the group said, did not raise eyebrows and "makes the UN an unreliable organization after it came to be in the hands of sides with a project against our people and nation."
Hezbollah defended Lebanon against the war and stood by the nation during Tel Aviv offensives in 2000 and 2006, forcing Israeli troops into withdrawal on both occasions and preventing the regime from fulfilling any of its objectives.
The movement has vowed to respond with determination to any potential Israel-launched warfare. It has publicly announced that it has the capability to hit targets deep into Israel and to strike Israeli Navy vessels even before they reach the Lebanese waters.
http://www.presstv.com/detail/149632.html
4 mar 2012, 12:13 , Respect -
Maria 5 nov 2010
Anti-Hezbollah bloc: Lebanon in 'grave danger'
Former president says Hezbollah threatens Lebanon 'as entity and democratic country'.
Hezbollah is undermining democracy in Lebanon by trying to torpedo a UN tribunal investigating the death of a former prime minister, members of the country's pro-Western bloc said Friday.
The statement comes as Lebanon endures its worst political crisis in years. Many observers fear there could be violence if Hezbollah members are indicted by the court, which was set up to prosecute the assassins of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
"Lebanon as an entity and democratic country is in grave danger," said Amin Gemayel, a former president who spoke after a meeting of Christian politicians allied to Prime Minister Saad Hariri - the son of the slain leader.
Gemayel said Lebanon is being forced to choose between justice and peace.
Previously, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has called on the Lebanese to refuse to cooperate with the tribunal and has vowed never to hand anyone over for prosecution in the case. Nasrallah says the court is biased and has been poisoned by "false witnesses" who misled the investigation.
On Friday, the statement read by Gemayel urged President Michel Suleiman "to put an end to the duplicity of weapons and restrict the responsibility of defending Lebanon to the legitimate forces backed by the Lebanese people."
Strains on the government were being felt elsewhere as well on Friday. More than 1,000 people carrying anti-government banners protested rising living costs, including food and petrol price hikes, in the southern port city of Sidon.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3980288,00.html
French FM in Beirut over Hariri case
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner
The French foreign minister has arrived in Beirut to discuss political tension in Lebanon over the UN tribunal probing former Lebanese premier Rafiq Hariri's assassination.
"The visit is an occasion to reiterate French support for the Lebanese authorities and cabinet headed by [Prime Minister Saad] Hariri," Bernard Kouchner was quoted as saying upon arrival on Friday.
During his two-day visit, the French foreign minister will meet with Lebanese President Michel Sleiman, Prime Minister Saad Hariri - the son of Rafiq, the slain former premier -- and House Speaker Nabih Berri, as well as other Lebanese officials, a Press TV correspondent reported.
Kouchner's visit comes as there are reports suggesting that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) is close to announcing its findings. France is a staunch backer of the STL.
According to unconfirmed reports, the UN tribunal plans to charge some members of Lebanon's resistance movement Hezbollah in connection with the assassination of Hariri, who was killed in a massive car bomb explosion on February 14, 2005 along with 22 others.
Hezbollah has repeatedly denied any involvement in the killing and has described the tribunal as an "Israeli project" trying to undermine the resistance movement.
The resistance movement also accuses the tribunal of basing its investigations on testimonies provided by "false witnesses."
In August, Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah presented a series of documents proving Israel's involvement in Hariri's murder.
The evidence included footage taken by Israeli drones of the routes frequented by Hariri prior to his assassination as well as recorded confessions by Israeli fifth columnists substantiating that the killing of the late Lebanese prime minister was carried out on orders from Tel Aviv.
http://www.presstv.com/detail/149772.html
4 mar 2012, 12:14 , Respect -
Maria 6 nov 2010
'Israel benefited most from Hariri hit'
A poster of former Lebanese Premier Rafiq Hariri
The Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah says the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri benefited Israel more than any other group.
Hezbollah International Relations Officer Ammar Moussawi said on Saturday that Tel Aviv had benefited the most from the murder, while the resistance movement was the party that bore the brunt of the backlash over the crime, the Lebanese portal Naharnet reported.
Hariri and 20 other people were killed in a massive car bombing in Beirut on February 14, 2005.
In an August speech, Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah presented evidence proving that Israel had masterminded the assassination. The televised address featured video captured by Israeli unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) as well as recorded confessions by Israeli fifth columnists, substantiating that Tel Aviv had been behind the killing.
The head of the Israeli Military Intelligence Directorate, Major General Amos Yadlin, said last month that Israel had gained from the assassination, explaining that Tel Aviv had been able to launch more than one operation in Lebanon following Hariri's murder.
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) was set up by the United Nations and the Lebanese government in May 2007 to investigate the murder. The tribunal is expected to announce its findings by the end of 2010.
Nasrallah said in July that he had been informed by the slain leader's son and successor, Saad Hariri, that the court "will accuse some undisciplined [Hezbollah] members." He rejected the allegation and warned that the plot was part of "a dangerous project that is targeting the resistance."
Political analysts say that such indictments are meant to sow discord in Lebanon.
On Friday, MP Hussein Moussawi, a Hezbollah representative in the Lebanese parliament, said the tribunal is "a recipe for instability in Lebanon."
He added that the tribunal had contributed to the country's exposure to Israel, saying that its role as a US-Israeli instrument created to destroy the resistance had been revealed.
"The political confrontation with the STL and its American and Zionist supporters is on%u2026 defending the Lebanese' security does not lie in defending a tribunal being dominated by the US and Israel," he stated.
"Any cooperation with an international side that serves Israel is grand treason against Lebanon and its noble people," he said.
http://www.presstv.com/detail/149917.html
...Read more 4 mar 2012, 12:26 , Respect -
Maria 8 nov 2010
Israel spies on UNIFIL: Ex-commander
Former UNIFIL commander Alain Pellegrini
A former commander of the United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon (UNIFIL) has revealed Israel's attempts to spy on the international troops.
Israeli espionage is not only limited to the Lebanese, former UNIFIL commander Alain Pellegrini told al-Manar TV station on Friday.
Pellegrini said Israeli agents had access to all the reports and information submitted by the UNIFIL forces to the United Nations, adding that he does not know the exact mechanism allowing this infiltration.
The information goes to the Israelis either by tapping or at the time it reaches the United Nations in New York, Pelligrini said.
"Every time I send my semi-annual report to the UNIFIL, attached by details for the leadership of United Nations forces alone, and despite the fact that the report is encrypted, I immediately receive after each report to New York, a letter from the Israeli Army, containing suggestions for writing the report, hoping to amend it!"
In an earlier interview with the Lebanese daily As-Safir, Pellgrini had revealed repeated attempts by Washington to avert UNIFIL in line with its own policy.
"I was offered to join American officers in the event of launching joint operations," he said in a reference to events around the July-August 2006 war Israel waged against Lebanon.
"The US had deployed (off the coast of Lebanon) the 24th Marine Intervention Unit, which has the capability to intervene in my operational area and would be ready to provide me with reinforcements in case of launching any operation."
The Lebanese opposition's distrust and doubts regarding a UN-backed tribunal into the murder of the country's ex-premier Rafiq Hariri has been growing as evidence such as Pelligrini's confessions and those earlier disclosed by Hezbollah on Israel's espionage on late Hariri continue to be ignored.
Hariri was assassinated on February 14, 2005, when a massive bomb explosion targeted his car in Beirut.
Pro-Western Lebanese factions blamed the killing on Syria and the country's Islamic resistance movement of Hezbollah -- allegations incumbent Prime Minister Saad Hariri withdrew in September as publically motivated.
http://www.presstv.com/detail/150081.html
Report: UN's Hariri probe will indict 2 Hezbollah members
NEW YORK (Ma'an) -- The United Nations-backed court investigating the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri is moving to indict between two and six members of the militant group Hezbollah by year-end, a US newspaper reported Monday.
The Wall Street Journal, quoting people briefed on the tribunal's work, reported that the US has scrambled to bolster support for the tribunal and the pro-Western government of Lebanon in the face of threats from Hezbollah if the indictments are handed down.
Among those being looked at in the UN probe, according to the people briefed on it quoted by the newspaper, is Mustafa Badreddine, a senior Hezbollah military commander and brother-in-law of Imad Mugniyah, who was among the FBI's most-wanted men before his death nearly three years ago.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=331874
Hizbullah to be implicated in Lebanese Premier's murder report
BEIRUT: Hizbullah members will be implicated in the death of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri when the United Nations-backed court issues indictments, sources close to the investigation said Monday.
The Wall Street Journal said that between two and six members of the militant group Hizbullah would be the subject of arrest warrants by the year-end, in line with expectations from the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL).
The court, which has been plagued by accusations of politicization since its inception in 2009 and is currently the target of fierce criticism from opposition MPs and their supporters, is expected to show that former Hizbullah Military Commander Imad Mughaniyeh had a part to play in Hariri's assassination.
Mughaniyeh, who was killed in a 2008 car bombing in Damascus, Syria, is also believed by UN investigators to have played a role, along with his brother-in-law, in the car bombing in downtown Beirut that killed Hariri and 22 others, according to the people briefed on the probe, the WSJ wrote.
Last week the United States government approved an additional $10 million funding for the STL, which is facing a cash shortfall should defiant members of the Lebanese cabinet deem the court unconstitutional and vote against continued state support.
STL President Antonio Cassese told journalists at The Hague that while he hoped indictments would be issued in the coming weeks, the decisions to issue arrest warrants laid with Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare, who has been conspicuous by his absence since antipathy against investigators has swelled.
We want to show that our international tribunal can do justice in an impartial way, free from bias, Cassese said.
The paper said that while court sources would not comment on the progress of indictments, the prosecution's case is thought to hinge on intelligence obtained from mobile phone taps.
Much of the tribunal's case rests on intercepts of cell phone communications among the alleged assassins in February 2005, according to individuals briefed on the case, the WSJ reported. The alleged perpetrators initially worked through a closed cell-phone network. This protection was compromised when one of the group's members called his girlfriend, according to these people.
Hizbullah has warned of the consequences should anticipated indictments against party members materialize. Last week, Hizbullah number 2 Naim Qassem told BBC Arabic that such an indictment is a warning bell equivalent to lighting the fuse, to igniting the wick for an explosion, and this is dangerous for Lebanon.
http://bit.ly/9Ek2mh
Report: Mugniyah among top suspects in Hariri murder
UN-backed tribunal set to indict up to six senior Hezbollah members in assassination of former Lebanese prime minister, Wall Street Journal reports.
Imad Mugniyah, Hezbollah's operations officer who was killed in a 2008 car bombing in Damascus, was one of the key figures behind the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday.
According to the report, Mugniyah and his brother-in-law Mustafa Badreddine are two out of possible six senior Hezbollah members that will be indicted for the murder by the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon, in charge of investigating the assassination.
Hariri and 22 other people were murdered on February 14, 2005 in a suicide attack in the Lebanese capital of Beirut. An international tribunal was established in 2007 in order to probe the attack and indict those responsible.
Badreddine, one of the candidates to replace Mugniyah as Hezbollah's operations officer, is the main suspect in Hariri's murder.
Members of the tribunal have faced difficulty during the investigation, culminating with a recent event in which some 30 furious women managed to chase them away during a visit to a local clinic.
Lebanese prosecutor general Said Mirza instructed to investigate the incident, but Hezbollah officials were quick to deny any involvement.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3981221,00.html
4 mar 2012, 12:27 , Respect -
Maria 9 nov 2010
Israel: Hezbollah, Syria, Iran Likely Involved in Hariri's Murder
As the countdown has started before the politicized final indictment in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri be released, Israeli media is insisting to uncover the secret details of the indictment.
On Tuesday, Israeli daily Yedihot Ahronot reported that the indictment would include Hezbollah as well as a number of Syrian and Iranian officials.
The Israeli daily quoted experts inside and outside the occupied territories who are following up on the Hariri murder case as saying that Syrian President Bashar Assad's son-in-law Assef Shawkat is reportedly involved in Hariri's 2005 assassination and that he would likely to be summoned for trial by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
Yedihot Ahronot said Brigadier General Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, is also likely involved in the Hariri crime.
The daily said that STL Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare refused an urgent request to postpone issuance of the report's conclusions about for fear that Hezbollah would rein in power, adding that the STL report will be issued in December as planned.
According to the experts quoted by the Israeli daily, the data on the involvement of Shawkat and other senior officials in the Syrian military intelligence in the Hariri assassination has led US President Barack Obama to change his position on Syria.
http://bit.ly/bxh5Oi
4 mar 2012, 12:27 , Respect -
Maria 4 mar 2012, 12:27 , Respect -
Maria 11 nov 2010
Hizbullah: We are ready for another war with Israel
Group's leader Nasrallah says they will "cut the hand" of anyone who tries to arrest any member of the party in connection with Rafik Hariri assassination.
Hizbullah is ready for another war with Israel, said the group's leader Hassan Nasrallah in a televised speech on Thursday evening.
Referring to what he termed Israel's habit of becoming involved where it is not welcome, he emphasized that his Lebanese terrorist group is not at all afraid of future conflicts.
With progress in the UN Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), charged with investigating the 2005 Rafik Hariri assassination, and the Hizbullah indictments expected, Nasrallah also said that Hizbullah will "cut the hand" of anyone who tries to arrest any member of the party.
"Those who imagine that we will allow the arrest or detention of any of our fighters are mistaken," he told thousands of supporters in south Beirut through video link. "We will cut the hand that reaches out for any one of them."
The Netherlands-based tribunal investigating the killing is expected to issue indictments in the coming months.
Denying outright any involvement in the assassination, he said that the group would not accept any accusation against any of its fighters or leaders.
"Those who think that the resistance will not defend itself and its dignity against any accusation are mistaken," he added.
On Wednesday, Press TV reported that Hizbullah had urged the Lebanese government to deal with the issue of false witnesses in the investigation tribunal.
The appeal came as the Lebanese government failed to reach an agreement about the issue after a four-hour meeting on Wednesday.
Hizbullah said the tribunal is marred by witnesses who gave false information.
http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=194994
Hezbollah to resist threats over Hariri
Hezbollah leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah
Hezbollah leader says the Lebanese resistance movement will not accept any accusations against its members over the assassination of Lebanon's former premier.
"Whoever thinks the resistance could possibly accept any accusation against any of its jihadists or leaders is mistaken -- no matter the pressures and threats," Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah said in a speech on the occasion of Hezbollah Martyr's Day on Thursday.
Rafiq Hariri was killed alongside more than 20 other people in a massive car bomb blast in Beirut on February 14, 2005.
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) was set up by the United Nations and the Lebanese government in May 2007 to investigate the murder. The tribunal is expected to announce its findings by the end of 2010.
"Whoever thinks that we will allow the arrest or detention of any of our jihadists is mistaken," AFP quoted Nasrallah as saying, adding that his political rivals are "in a hurry to see an indictment" in the five-year-old case.
Nasrallah said in July that he had been informed by the slain leader's son and successor, Saad Hariri, that the court "will accuse some undisciplined [Hezbollah] members."
He rejected the allegation and warned that the plot was part of "a dangerous project that is targeting the resistance."
Nasrallah also warned that the court had led Beirut to a "sensitive place," saying it was aimed at inciting division in the country.
Western-backed parties in Lebanon accused Syria and the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah of involvement in Hariri's murder, a claim rejected by both Damascus and Hezbollah.
In September, Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri admitted to have wrongly accused Syria of being behind his father's assassination and acknowledged that the accusations were politically charged.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/150614.html
Lebanon heading toward 'regime crisis'
Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun
The leader of Lebanon's Free Patriotic Movement has slammed the government for its lack of control over false witnesses who testified during a UN tribunal on Rafiq Hariri's killing.
"When a government does not dare to send a false witness to the court, then the Cabinet and its Prime Minister must immediately resign," Michel Aoun said in an interview with Lebanon's OTV.
On Wednesday, Lebanon's government postponed a probe into the case of false witnesses that testified at the UN tribunal investigating the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese premier Rafiq Hariri.
Aoun said the postponing of the session to discuss the controversial false witnesses' issue was merely a maneuver to gain time while waiting for a certain event.
He added that the Lebanese government is headed towards a regime crisis and said the opposition would be meeting to discuss the issue.
In 2005, the former premier was killed in a massive car bombing in the capital city of Beirut.
Western-backed parties in Lebanon accused Syria and the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement of involvement in the murder, a claim vehemently refuted by both Damascus and Hezbollah.
A UN Special Tribunal for Lebanon was set up by the world body and the Lebanese government in May 2007 to investigate the case.
Hezbollah has repeatedly denied any involvement in the Hariri assassination, saying it does not recognize the tribunal as it is an "Israeli project" aimed at undermining the resistance movement.
In an August speech, Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah presented evidence proving that Israel had masterminded the assassination.
The televised address featured video captured by Israeli unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) as well as recorded confessions by Israeli fifth columnists, substantiating that Tel Aviv had been behind the killing.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/150610.html
Lebanon postpones debate on UN tribunal witnesses
BEIRUT (DPA) -- The Lebanese cabinet postponed on Wednesday a debate on witnesses accused of misleading UN investigators probing the 2005 assassination of former prime minister Rafik Hariri, in a bid to avoid more tension in the country.
The Hezbollah-led opposition and its pro-Syrian allies have insisted on a vote inside the cabinet on the issue in order to hand it over to the nation's highest court.
The opposition, claim the "false witnesses" were paid by their rivals in the western-backed majority, headed by premier Saad Hariri, to feed information that will implicate Hezbollah and Syria in the killings of Hariri and at least 20 others. They say they want to investigate who allegedly paid witnesses to feed false information to UN Tribunal for Lebanon.
A government source said after the cabinet session that "a consensus has been reached on postponing a cabinet vote on the false witnesses issue to a later session after a lengthy and heated discussions between the opposition and majority ministers."
Hariri was killed in a massive bomb blast in 2005 at a seaside area of Beirut. Hariri's allies blamed Syria for the assassination, a charge Damascus still denies.
According to the government source, President Michel Suleiman proposed forming a parliamentary inquiry committee to look into the false witnesses issue, but the opposition rejected the proposal.
On Wednesday, Hezbollah accused its pro-Western political rivals of protecting what it said were false witnesses.
"We denounce ... attempts to halt the process of uncovering who was behind these witnesses, who fabricated to destabilize Lebanon and harm Lebanon's relations with Syria," it said in a statement after a meeting of its parliamentary bloc.
Hezbollah has described the UN Tribunal for Lebanon of being an "Israeli project."
On the other hand, Hariri's allies have accused Hezbollah of trying to discredit and derail the tribunal, which is reportedly set to indict members of the Lebanese Shiite movement in connection with the assassination.
Hezbollah is part of a national unity government headed by Saad Hariri, son of the slain ex-premier.
Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah called last month on the Lebanese people and government to boycott the UN tribunal.
But Premier Hariri has vowed to back the tribunal until the truth behind his father's death is revealed despite pressures by the powerful Shiite group.
Observers feared that the standoff inside the cabinet could lead to the collapse of the government, paralyzing the political institutions in the country and repeating the 18-month political deadlock that led in May 2008 to deadly clashes between Hariri's allies and Hezbollah.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=332917