Kerry on Hariri Murder Anniversary: We Encourage All Parties to Respect Lebanon Security, Stability
The United States encourages “all parties to exercise restraint and respect for Lebanon’s security and stability, consistent with United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1559 and 1701,” U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday, in a statement marking the 8th assassination anniversary of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
“Those who initiated the killing sought to undermine Lebanon's sovereignty and independence. This act of cold blooded mass murder sent shivers throughout the region. I will never forget sitting in Beirut soon after for my meetings held next to a portrait of Hariri shrouded in black,” Kerry said, recalling his visit to Lebanon in 2005.
“The grief was palpable across a city and nation in mourning and upheaval,” he added.
“Eight years later, the United States reaffirms that we reject the use of assassination as a political tool by parties within or outside Lebanon, and we stand with the Lebanese people as they seek to make clear once and for all that political assassination and politically motivated violence will no longer be carried out with impunity,” Kerry stressed.
He voiced his country's support for the work of the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon to “independently investigate and hold accountable those responsible for the assassination of Hariri and the others killed and injured on that tragic day.”
Kerry also noted that since the Hariri assassination, “too many more of Lebanon’s citizens have fallen in targeted killings, including (Intelligence Bureau head) Wissam al-Hasan just four months ago.”
He added that other political figures have been targeted in assassination attempts, “including Lebanese Forces Party Leader Dr. Samir Geagea and independent MP Butros Harb,” underlining that “the killing must end and those responsible must be held accountable.”
“The United States continues its unwavering support for a stable, sovereign, and independent Lebanon,” the top U.S. diplomat added.
Four Hizbullah members have been named suspects by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon in the Beirut truck bombing that killed Hariri on Feb. 14, 2005.
The party denies the charges and has refused to hand over the suspects. Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has accused the court of being part of a U.S.-Israeli plot.
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