STL: Fifth Suspect in Hariri Assassination May Be Tried in Absentia if He is Not Found

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon has announced the confirmation of an indictment accusing Hassan Habib Merhi of involvement in the 14 February 2005 Beirut attack for which four other accused are to be tried in absentia; that trial has a tentative start date of 13 January 2014, said STL President Judge David Baragwanath in a statement on Monday.

“The Lebanese authorities have so far been unable to locate Mr. Merhi. I have therefore ordered the service of the indictment in alternative modes, which include public advertisement. If, following such procedures, Mr. Merhi has not been brought under the Tribunal’s authority, the Trial Chamber will be asked to decide whether to initiate proceedings against him in absentia,” he added.

For citizens of Lebanon, trial in absentia is a familiar alternative to trial in the presence of the accused.

“Its justification is two-fold. First because it is fair: our Statute and Rules of Procedure and Evidence ensure that counsel is appointed to protect the interests of the accused in absentia. Moreover, a person who has been convicted in absentia but then appears before the Tribunal is entitled to a retrial,” explained Baragwanath.

“Secondly, trial in absentia is a valid alternative because it enables the victims and the community to learn the nature of the case presented in the courtroom, and allows victims the opportunity to actively participate in proceedings,” he continued.

“Trial in absentia is however a second-best, because of the absence of the accused. From the standpoint of the accused its disadvantage is that Defense counsel and the Tribunal both lack the information in support of his defense that only the accused can provide,” he stated.

“So I address both Mr. Merhi and also the people of Lebanon. As to Mr. Merhi, I invite you to consider whether you are prepared to face the Special Tribunal with the help both of the Defense Office headed by Francois Roux and of the counsel he would assist you to obtain if that is your wish,” said the STL president.

“As to the people of Lebanon, we seek your help and support in properly performing our tasks,” he remarked.

“The Tribunal is charged with the investigation, prosecution, defense and trial of persons accused of crimes within its jurisdiction. This is what the United Nations, of which Lebanon is a proud founding member, decided, after a request in this sense came from Lebanon. This is why the U.N. Secretary General has appointed each of our judges to perform the adjudication,” he noted.

“Each judge regards our obligation of fairness as absolute. That is why an earlier tentative date was not met; the disclosure of evidence to which the Defense are entitled was then incomplete and the Pre-Trial Judge deemed it necessary to grant more time,” explained Baragwanath.

“I repeat what I have previously said publicly: the politics of Lebanon are for the Lebanese people and are none of our business,” he stressed.

“Our responsibility is confined to two areas. As to the first, our judicial mandate can be summarized as follows: what facts does the criminal law of Lebanon require to be proved by the Prosecutor in relation to the charges contained in the indictment? The Judges will focus on whether those facts are proved by due process, on admissible evidence, beyond reasonable doubt,” he said.

“If so, the accused will be convicted; if the answer to any part of this the latter question is no, then he will be acquitted,” he continued.

“Our second area of responsibility is contributing to the efforts of the Lebanese government, its judiciary, and its people to restore in full the operation of the rule of law in Lebanon,” he added.

“International justice must be pursued to completion. Various attempts to obstruct it have failed. All of our judges, in each of whom I have complete confidence, remain determined to carry out our responsibilities,” he concluded.

On October 10, Merhi, a Hizbullah supporter, was named as the fifth suspect in the February 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in Beirut.

Merhi, is charged with a number of crimes including the crime of conspiracy aimed at committing a terrorist act. He is alleged to have acted in a conspiracy with Hizbullah members Mustafa Amin Badreddine, Salim Jamil Ayyash, Hussein Hassan Oneissi, and Assad Hassan Sabra in relation to the attack, all of whom have already been indicted.

Merhi is alleged to have coordinated the preparation of the purported claim of responsibility as part of the preparations for and in furtherance of the attack.

Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has rejected the STL, describing it as an American-Israeli product bent on destroying the party.

He has vowed never to cooperate with the tribunal, saying that the suspects will never be found.