The Special Tribunal for Lebanon Victims' Participation Unit on Friday reminded “victims of the 14 February 2005 attack that if they wish to participate in proceedings before the Tribunal in the Ayyash et al case, they must submit an application by Monday 31 October 2011.”

“This deadline was set by the Pre-Trial Judge (Daniel Fransen) in an order of 8 September 2011,” STL’s press office said in a statement.

MP Marwan Hamadeh revealed Thursday that ex-PM Saad Hariri was “unconvinced” with Premier Najib Miqati’s avowed commitment to funding the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

“Hariri is unconvinced with Miqati’s commitment to funding the STL, but we in the March 14 camp have not ruled out such a possibility,” Hamadeh said in an interview on MTV, when asked about Wednesday’s meeting in Riyadh between Hariri and a March 14 delegation.

The head of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon Defense Office Francois Roux assigned a primary duty counsel and a co-counsel to each of the accused, pursuant to the Trial Chamber’s scheduling order of 20 October 2011, announced the STL in a statement on Wednesday.

“The purpose of these assignments is to ensure that the rights and interests of the accused are individually protected while the Trial Chamber considers whether to initiate in absentia proceedings,” it explained.

A visiting U.S. State Department official on Tuesday underscored “the need for Lebanon to meet all of its international obligations,” the U.S. embassy in Lebanon said.

“Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, Jake Walles, visited Lebanon and met with senior officials to discuss the political, security, and economic situation in Lebanon, as well as the current situation in Syria,” the embassy said in a statement.

The head of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon Defense Office Francois Roux revealed that Prosecutor Judge Daniel Bellemare, Pre-Trial Judge Daniel Fransen, and the Defense team will convene soon to assess proceedings of the tribunal.

He told the daily An Nahar in remarks published on Saturday that in absentia trials are much more difficult for the Defense, explaining that it requires time to evaluate the Prosecution’s file.

Special Tribunal for Lebanon Pre-Trial Judge Daniel Fransen ruled on Thursday that victims’ applications to participate in the trial relating to the February 14, 2005 assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri should, barring exceptional circumstances, be filed before October 31, 2011.

The STL said in a statement on Tuesday: “This deadline for filing the participation requests is aimed in particular at allowing those persons who having been granted the status of a victim participating in the proceedings, to make known ‘their views and concerns’ from the start of the pre-trial stage of the case.”

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon Defense Office published on Wednesday the List of Counsel, it announced in a statement.

“Currently, 120 have been admitted to the List, out of a total of 145 applicants. One hundred and eighteen names have been made public, along with information about the primary jurisdiction in which they are admitted,” it revealed.

Special Tribunal for Lebanon spokesman Marten Youssef stressed on Thursday that the indictment has a supplement that wasn’t released to keep the identity of witnesses and the investigation confidential.

“There is a part of the indictment that the pre-trial judge (Daniel Fransen) decided to keep confidential, especially in the matters that would affect the witnesses, investigations and the victims,” Youssef told al-Okaz Saudi newspaper.

Special Tribunal for Lebanon Registrar Herman von Hebel stressed on Friday that the trials in the case of the assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri will begin in mid-2012 whether they were in the presence of the suspects or in absentia, As Safir newspaper reported.

“The final decision in setting the timing goes back to the judges,” Von Hebel said.

The Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc on Tuesday said Hizbullah’s leadership “has put itself in the circle of accusation by protecting the suspects” indicted by the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon in the murder case of former premier Rafik Hariri.

In a statement issued after its weekly meeting at the Center House, the bloc slammed what it called Hizbullah’s “arrogant approach.”