Hariri Tribunal Enters Delicate Stage

The tribunal has made a list of names of those involved in the assassination of Rafik Hariri, but it will not make the names public. I don't think the fear is jury tampering, but rather trying to keep a tenuous peace in Lebanon with Syria and Hizbullah looking for the matches to light the whole place on fire not to mention keeping both the witnesses and suspects alive.

In its fourth report to the UN Security Council, the International Independent Investigation Commission, headed by Brammertz, provided new evidence on the suicide bombing that killed Hariri and 22 others on February 14, 2005.

Brammertz said suspects and witnesses' names should not be made public to avoid prejudicing the trial.

He also revealed that the commission's work on 14 other cases of murder and attempted murder since October 2004 continues to elicit significant links between each case and to indicate links to the Rafiq Hariri's case.

The UN team also helped Lebanese authorities investigate the November 21 assassination of Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel; which lingered political tensions in the country to a new crisis point.

The investigation has determined that a single blast from a Mitsubishi van packed with high explosives was likely detonated by a male suicide bomber who did not grow up in Lebanon but only spent his final months there.

It also said the commission assumed that the Hariri tribunal would take place, but stressed the investigation was taking place in a "volatile" and "highly unpredictable" political and security environment that could contribute to the reticence of witnesses.

In other words, Syria and those closest to the Assad inner circle are behind the attacks, but no one can actually say it in public for fear of becoming another victim of the Assad regime.

Rick Moran notes who the Mehlis Report named as suspects and it's a who's who of Syrian thuggery:

Some of the Syrian government officials named in the Mehlis report are:

Maher al-Assad, brother of President Bashar Assad
Assef Shawkat, Syrian President Bashar Assad’s brother-in-law and head of Syrian intelligence;
Bahjat Suleiman, a high ranking Syrian intelligence officer;
Ghazi Kenaan, the former Syrian Interior Minister and commander of Syria’s intelligence apparatus in Lebanon between 1982 and 2002.

President Assad himself threatened Hariri personally in a meeting just weeks prior to the assassination according to Saad Hariri, the ex-Prime Minister’s son and current leader of March 14th Forces in Parliament.

Others involved may include several pro-Syrian Lebanese generals.

Technorati: terrorism, nasrallah, fatah, gilad shalit, siniora, nasrallah, Olmert, Abbas, rafik hariri, PRC, Hamas, Gaza, palestinian, Israel, hizbullah, hezbullah, hezbollah, lebanon, syria.