Hariri Meets U.S. Senators, Says Tribunal is ‘Just Cause’

Caretaker Premier Saad Hariri held talks with U.S. Senators John McCain and Joseph Lieberman at Center House on Monday, a statement from his press office said.

The meeting was attended by U.S. Ambassador Maura Connelly, Nader Hariri, and advisors Mohammed Shatah and Hani Hammoud.

“Discussions tackled the situation in Lebanon and the region, and bilateral relations,” said the statement.

Hariri later held a dinner banquet in honor of McCain and Lieberman and the accompanying delegation.

Earlier Monday, Hariri reiterated support for the international tribunal as the best means to uncover the truth behind ex-Premier Rafik Hariri’s Feb. 2005 assassination.

“Our roots are Lebanon, Arabism and coexistence. The international tribunal is a just cause to uncover the criminals in the assassination of (former) Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and other martyrs,” Hariri told a delegation from his Mustaqbal Movement’s lawyers and engineers who visited him at Center House.