Assassination of Rafic Hariri
Encyclopedia
Motorcade
A motorcade is a procession of vehicles. The term motorcade was coined by Lyle Abbot , and is formed after cavalcade on the false notion that "-cade" was a suffix meaning "procession"...
drove near the St. George Hotel in Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
. Among the dead were several of Hariri's bodyguard
Bodyguard
A bodyguard is a type of security operative or government agent who protects a person—usually a famous, wealthy, or politically important figure—from assault, kidnapping, assassination, stalking, loss of confidential information, terrorist attack or other threats.Most important public figures such...
s and his friend and former Minister of the Economy Bassel Fleihan
Bassel Fleihan
Bassel Fleihan was a Lebanese legislator and Minister of Economy and Commerce. He died from injuries sustained when a massive bomb exploded on the Beirut seafront as he passed by in former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri's motorcade on February 14, 2005. 20 other people, including Hariri,...
. Hariri was buried along with his bodyguards, who died in the bombing, in a location near Mohammad Al-Amin Mosque
Mohammad Al-Amin Mosque
The Mohammad Al-Amin Mosque is a mosque located in Martyrs' Square in downtown Beirut, Lebanon. It was built between 2002 and 2007 by the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, who was buried beside it...
. According to CBC News
CBC News
CBC News is the department within the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on CBC television, radio and online services...
, the Wall Street Journal and Israeli daily Ha'aretz, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon
Special Tribunal for Lebanon
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is an international tribunal for the prosecution under Lebanese law of those responsible for the assassination of Rafic Hariri on February 14, 2005. The tribunal also has jurisdiction over a series of other attacks in Lebanon if they are proven to be connected...
along with an independent investigation carried out by the Capt. Wissam Eid of the Lebanese Internal Security Forces
Internal Security Forces
The Internal Security Forces – ISF or Forces de Sécurité Intérieure in French, are the national police and security force of Lebanon. Modern police were established in Lebanon in 1861, with creation of the Gendarmerie...
Intelligence Branch, had found compelling evidence for the responsibility of Lebanese militia Hezbollah in the assassination. In quick succession to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon
Special Tribunal for Lebanon
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is an international tribunal for the prosecution under Lebanese law of those responsible for the assassination of Rafic Hariri on February 14, 2005. The tribunal also has jurisdiction over a series of other attacks in Lebanon if they are proven to be connected...
contacting Capt. Eid, in order to aid its investigation, Wissam Eid was assassinated in the explosion of a car bomb, in a similar way to Hariri.
UN Investigation
Émile Lahoud
General Émile Jamil Lahoud is a former President of Lebanon. Lahoud is a Maronite-Catholic, as is required for the Lebanese presidency. Under Lebanon's unwritten constitutional agreement, the National Pact, the presidency is earmarked for Maronite_Catholic, the parliament speaker's post for a Shia...
, emboldened by popular anger and civic action now being called Lebanon's "Cedar Revolution
Cedar Revolution
The Cedar Revolution or Independence Intifada was a chain of demonstrations in Lebanon triggered by the assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri on February 14, 2005.The primary goals of the original activists were the...
". Lebanese Druze
Druze
The Druze are an esoteric, monotheistic religious community, found primarily in Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan, which emerged during the 11th century from Ismailism. The Druze have an eclectic set of beliefs that incorporate several elements from Abrahamic religions, Gnosticism, Neoplatonism...
leader Walid Jumblatt
Walid Jumblatt
Walid Jumblatt is a Lebanese politician and the current leader of the Progressive Socialist Party . He is the most prominent leader of Lebanon's Druze community.-Family:...
, a newer recruit of the anti-Syrian opposition, said in the wake of the assassination that in August 2004 Syrian President Bashar al-Assad
Bashar al-Assad
Bashar al-Assad is the President of Syria and Regional Secretary of the Ba'ath Party. His father Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria for 29 years until his death in 2000. Al-Assad was elected in 2000, re-elected in 2007, unopposed each time.- Early Life :...
threatened Hariri, saying "Lahoud is me. ... If you and Chirac
Jacques Chirac
Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...
want me out of Lebanon, I will break Lebanon." He was quoted as saying "I heard him telling us those words." The United States, the EU
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
and the UN
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
have stopped short of any accusations, choosing instead to demand a Syrian pullout from Lebanon and an open and international investigation of the assassination. Jumblatt's comments are not without controversy; the BBC describes him as "being seen by many as the country's political weathervane" - consistently changing allegiances to emerge on the winning side of the issues du jour through the turmoil of the 1975-90 civil war and its troubled aftermath. He was a supporter of Syria after the war but switched sides after the death of former Syrian president Hafez al-Assad
Hafez al-Assad
Hafez ibn 'Ali ibn Sulayman al-Assad or more commonly Hafez al-Assad was the President of Syria for three decades. Assad's rule consolidated the power of the central government after decades of coups and counter-coups, such as Operation Wappen in 1957 conducted by the Eisenhower administration and...
in 2000. His account is quoted, but not confirmed, in the UN
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
's FitzGerald Report
FitzGerald Report
The '"Report of the Fact-Finding Mission to Lebanon inquiring into the causes, circumstances and consequences of the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, 25 February - 24 March 2005,"' better known as the FitzGerald Report, is the outcome of an inquiry, ordered by the United Nations...
. The report stops short of directly accusing Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
or any other party, saying that only a further thorough international inquest can identify the culprit. Lara Marlow, an Irish journalist also said that Hariri told her that he received threats. The Lebanese government has agreed to this inquiry, though calling for the full participation, not supremacy, of its own agencies and the respect of Lebanese sovereignty.
According to these testimonies, Hariri reminded Assad of his pledge not to seek an extension for Lahoud's term, and Assad replied that there was a policy shift and that the decision was already taken. He added that Lahoud should be viewed as his personal representative in Lebanon and that "opposing him is tantamount to opposing Assad himself". He then added that he (Assad) "would rather break Lebanon over the heads of Hariri and [Druze leader] Walid Jumblatt than see his word in Lebanon broken". Irish journalist Lara Marlowe
Lara Marlowe
Lara Marlowe is a United States journalist and author, who is currently US correspondent for The Irish Times, after having spent many years as the paper's Paris correspondent. Marlowe also spend 15 years as a journalist for Time.-Career:...
with whom Hariri talked reported similar allegations. According to the testimonies, Assad then threatened both long time allies Hariri and Jumblatt with physical harm if they opposed the extension for Lahoud. The meeting reportedly lasted for ten minutes, and was the last time Hariri met with Assad. After that meeting, Hariri told his supporters that they had no other option but to support the extension for Lahoud. The Mission has also received accounts of further threats made to Hariri by security officials in case he abstained from voting in favor of the extension or "even thought of leaving the country". Many analysts also believe that Assad was unhappy with Hariri for his support of Resolution 1559 and of the Syria Accountability Act". The resolution was sponsored and spearheaded by Jacques Chirac, France's former president and personal friend of Hariri. Given the strong relationship that Hariri enjoyed with Chirac, many believe that if the former was not directly involved he could have at least swayed his friend from sponsoring a Resolution that meant to harm the Syrian government and people.
The United Nations Security Council
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
adopted Resolution 1595
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1595
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1595, adopted unanimously on April 7, 2005, after recalling its support for the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Lebanon, the Council established a commission to assist Lebanese authorities in their investigation of the assassination...
to send an investigative team to look into Hariri's assassination. This team was headed by German judge Detlev Mehlis
Detlev Mehlis
Detlev Mehlis is currently the Senior Public Prosecutor in the Office of the Attorney General in Berlin. He has 30 years of prosecutorial experience and has led numerous investigations into serious, complex transnational crimes...
and presented its initial report to the Security Council on 20 October 2005. The Mehlis Report
Mehlis report
The Mehlis Report is the result of the United Nations' investigation into the 14 February 2005 assassination of Lebanon's former prime minister Rafik al-Hariri. The investigation was launched in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1595 and headed by the German judge, Detlev Mehlis...
implicated Syrian and Lebanese officials, with special focus on Syria's military intelligence chief, Assef Shawkat and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad
Bashar al-Assad
Bashar al-Assad is the President of Syria and Regional Secretary of the Ba'ath Party. His father Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria for 29 years until his death in 2000. Al-Assad was elected in 2000, re-elected in 2007, unopposed each time.- Early Life :...
's brother-in-law
Brother-in-law
A brother-in-law is the brother of one's spouse, the husband of one's sibling, or the husband of one's spouse's sibling.-See also:*Affinity *Sister-in-law*Brothers in Law , a 1955 British comedy novel...
. United States President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
has called for a special meeting of the UN to be convened to discuss international response "as quickly as possible to deal with this very serious matter." Detlev Mehlis has asked for more time to investigate all leads. Lebanese politicians have asked to extend the investigative team's duration and charter, to include assassinations of other prominent anti-Syrian Lebanese, such as Gebran Tueni
Gebran Tueni
Gebran Ghassan Tueni was a Lebanese politician and the former editor and publisher of the mass circulation An-Nahar daily newspaper in Beirut, Lebanon....
. A second report, submitted on 10 December 2005, upholds the conclusions from the first report. On 11 January 2006, Mehlis was replaced by the Belgian Serge Brammertz
Serge Brammertz
Serge Brammertz is a Belgian jurist, and the prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.Brammertz was deputy prosecutor of the International Criminal Court from 2002 to 2007...
.
Syria had extensive military and intelligence influence in Lebanon at the time of Hariri's murder, but Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
has claimed repeatedly it had no knowledge of the bombing. A United Nations report sponsored by the US and UK found converging evidence of Syrian and Lebanese involvement in this attack. The UN Security Council voted unanimously to demand full Syrian cooperation with UN investigators in the matter, and Serge Brammertz's last two reports praised Syria's full co-operation.
On 30 December 2005, former Syrian vice-president Abdul Halim Khaddam
Abdul Halim Khaddam
Abdul Halim Khaddam is a Syrian politician who was Vice President of Syria from 1984 to 2005.-Early life and career:Abdul Halim Khaddam was born on 15 September 1932 in Baniyas, Syria. Abdul Halim was one of the few Sunni Muslims to make it to the top of the Alawite-dominated Syrian leadership...
in a televised interview implicated President Assad in the assassination and said that Assad personally threatened Hariri in the months before his death. This interview has caused Syrian MPs to demand treason charges against Khaddam.
On December 18, 2006, a progress report by former head of the investigation, Serge Brammertz
Serge Brammertz
Serge Brammertz is a Belgian jurist, and the prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.Brammertz was deputy prosecutor of the International Criminal Court from 2002 to 2007...
, indicated that DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
evidence collected from the crime scene suggests that the assassination might be the act of a young male suicide bomber.
On March 28, 2008, the 10th report of the UN's International Independent Investigation Commission
United Nations International Independent Investigation Commission
The United Nations International Independent Investigation Commission was established in April 2005 by Security Council Resolution 1595 to investigate the assassination of Rafic Hariri, the former Prime Minister of Lebanon on 14 February 2005....
found that, "a network of individuals acted in concert to carry out the assassination of Rafiq Hariri and that this criminal network — the "Hariri Network" — or parts thereof are linked to some of the other cases within the Commission's mandate."
The Security Council extended the mandate for the investigation, which was to end in December 2008, until 28 February 2009.
UN Special Tribunal
As of 6 February 2006, both the United Nations and the government of Lebanon had agreed to a proposal establishing a Special Tribunal for LebanonSpecial Tribunal for Lebanon
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is an international tribunal for the prosecution under Lebanese law of those responsible for the assassination of Rafic Hariri on February 14, 2005. The tribunal also has jurisdiction over a series of other attacks in Lebanon if they are proven to be connected...
. The tribunal will mark the first time that an international court tried individuals for a "terrorist" crime committed against a specific person. The United Nations acted in early 2007 to force the process ahead, a move strongly opposed by Syria and its allies in Lebanon, and for reasons of security, efficiency and fairness, the location is to be outside Lebanon.
In December 2007 the Netherlands agreed to host the tribunal in the former Dutch intelligence headquarters in the town of Leidschendam
Leidschendam
Leidschendam is a town and former municipality in the province of South Holland of the Netherlands. Along with Voorburg and Stompwijk, it is part of the municipality Leidschendam-Voorburg.- History :...
, a suburb of The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
. The court opened on 1 March 2009.
On April 29, 2009, following a request of prosecutor Daniel Bellemare, the tribunal ordered the "immediate and unconditional release" of the only four suspects arrested during the investigation, "for complete absence of reliable proof against them". These were General Jamil Mohammad Amin el-Sayyed (head of General Security), General Ali Salah el-Dine el-Hajj (chief of internal security forces, the Lebanese police force), Brigadier-General Raymond Fouad Azar (head of Army Intelligence) and Brigadier-General Mostafa Fehmi Hamdane (head of the presidential guard). Considered as Syria's main rule-enforcing agents at the time, they have spent nearly 3 years and 8 months in detention after Lebanese authorities arrested them on September 1, 2005, and during that period no charges were ever pressed against them. Their release came amidst a tense political atmosphere in Lebanon, due to the officially admitted heavy politization of the affair. Several anti-Syrian political figures have stated that "[we] still consider them as guilty."
On 30 June 2011, Haaretz
Haaretz
Haaretz is Israel's oldest daily newspaper. It was founded in 1918 and is now published in both Hebrew and English in Berliner format. The English edition is published and sold together with the International Herald Tribune. Both Hebrew and English editions can be read on the Internet...
reported that the tribunal had submitted to Lebanon's prosecutor general indictments of four Lebanese Hezbollah members, and a foreigner. The indictments were served by representatives of the International Court of Justice
International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. It is based in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands...
at The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
.
Nasrallah
In August 2010, in response to notification that the UN tribunal would indict some Hezbollah members, Hassan NasrallahHassan Nasrallah
Hasan Nasrallah, became the third Secretary General of the Lebanese political and paramilitary organization Hezbollah after Israel assassinated the previous leader, Abbas al-Musawi, in 1992. Hezbollah in its entirety is considered a terrorist organization by The United States, the Netherlands,...
said that Ahmed Nasrallah had confessed to working for Israel in the assassination of Rafik Hariri in order to drum up anti-Syrian feelings. Saad Hariri responded that the UN should investigate these claims.
Aftermath
Jacques Chirac
Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...
. Chirac was one of the first foreign dignitaries to offer condolences to Hariri's widow in person at her home in Beirut. The Special Tribunal for Lebanon was also created at his instigation.
Following Hariri's death, there were several other bombings and assassinations
2005 Lebanon bombings
Post-Lahoud Term Extension=In recent years, a series of bombings and assassinations have struck Lebanon, most of them occurring in and around the capital, Beirut. This wave of bombings began with the assassination attempt of Mr...
against anti-Syrian figures. These included Samir Kassir
Samir Kassir
Samir Kassir was a Lebanese professor of history at Saint-Joseph University and journalist. Born to a Palestinian father and a Syrian mother, Kassir received his degree in philosophy and political philosophy in 1984, in 1990, Kassir earned his PhD in Modern History also from the University of...
, George Hawi
George Hawi
George Hawi was a Lebanese politician and former secretary general of the Lebanese Communist Party . He was assassinated in 2005.-Background:...
, Gebran Tueni
Gebran Tueni
Gebran Ghassan Tueni was a Lebanese politician and the former editor and publisher of the mass circulation An-Nahar daily newspaper in Beirut, Lebanon....
, Pierre Amine Gemayel
Pierre Amine Gemayel
Pierre Amine Gemayel was a Lebanese politician in the Kataeb Party, better known in English as the Phalange Party. Lebanon's second-youngest MP, he was a rising star in his party...
, and Walid Eido
Walid Eido
Walid Eido was a Lebanese politician and member of the Current for the Future Lebanese political movement and an MP in the Lebanese Parliament. He was also a member of the March 14 Coalition...
. Assassination attempts were made on Elias Murr
Elias Murr
Elias Murr is the former Lebanese Defense Minister and Deputy Prime Minister. He held the positions of Deputy Prime minister and Interior Minister in previous Cabinets....
, May Chidiac
May Chidiac
May Chidiac is a Lebanese Christian Maronite journalist.Chidiac is a former television journalist at the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation and one of the station's main television anchors until an assassination attempt on her life...
, and Samir Shehade (who was investigating Hariri's death).
Books
- Jürgen Cain KülbelJürgen Cain KülbelJürgen Cain Külbel is a German former criminal investigator of the GDR, who became a journalist after the reunification of Germany.Jürgen Cain Külbel came to international light after publishing a counter-investigation on the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri. In it,...
: Mordakte Hariri: Unterdrückte Spuren im Libanon, 2006, ISBN 3897068605 - Jürgen Cain KülbelJürgen Cain KülbelJürgen Cain Külbel is a German former criminal investigator of the GDR, who became a journalist after the reunification of Germany.Jürgen Cain Külbel came to international light after publishing a counter-investigation on the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri. In it,...
: Ietail Al-Hariri. Adellah Machfiyyah, 2006, ISBN 3897069733 - Nicholas Blanford: Killing Mr. Lebanon: The assassination of Rafiq Hariri and its impact on the Middle East, 2006, ISBN 1845112024
External links
- The Mehlis Report from the United NationsUnited NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
(pdf) - Hariri Murder coverage fropm YaLibnan, with photo gallery
- UN Security Council media release on briefing of Security Council
- Hariri, Homicide and The Hague op-ed by The Hague Centre for Strategic Studies
- The Syrian Gambit Unravels from antiwar.com
- Rafic Hariri Memorial - 3d where he was killed.
- Report presented to UN Security Council implicating Syrian and Lebanese officials - UN.org 20 October 2005
- MacDonald, Neil. CBC Investigation: Who killed Lebanon's Rafik Hariri?, CBC NewsCBC NewsCBC News is the department within the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on CBC television, radio and online services...
, November 21, 2010 - CBC Video links: Getting Away With Murder: Part 1; Part 2.
- Thierry Meyssan's article, well-researched, dissident viewpoint.