NEW YORK: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on authorities in Beirut to respect the decision of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, which on Thursday imposed life sentences on two members of Hezbollah for involvement in the 2005 bombing that claimed the life of former prime minister Rafik Hariri.
Hariri was killed on Feb. 14, 2005, by a suicide bomber who targeted his armored convoy on the Beirut waterfront. The blast killed 21 other people and injured 226.
The attack triggered nationwide protests that drove Syrian troops out of Lebanon after almost 30 years of military deployment in the country.
Salim Ayyash was convicted by the STL in 2020 and sentenced to life imprisonment for his part in the assassination, but the tribunal ruled that there was insufficient evidence to convict Habib Merhi and Hussein Oneissi. Prosecutors appealed against the acquittal and in March both men were found guilty.
All three men were tried, convicted and sentenced in their absence. They remain at large and are unlikely to serve any time in jail because Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Iran-backed Hezbollah, does not recognize the authority of the court and refuses to hand them over.
Guterres said his thoughts “are with the victims of the Feb. 14 attack, and their families.” He also expressed his “deep appreciation for the dedication and hard work of the judges and staff involved in this case throughout the years.”
Noting “the independence and impartiality of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon,” he called on Lebanese authorities “to respect the decision of the Tribunal.”
Farhan Haq, a spokesperson for the UN in New York, told Arab News that the organization “welcomed the progress and the work being done by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and we believe that this is a case where the people of Lebanon deserve justice.”
The STL was established at The Hague in the Netherlands in 2009 in line with a UN Security Council resolution. It eventually tried four suspects in absentia, one of whom, Assad Sabra, was acquitted.
Plagued by political issues in Lebanon, the court announced last year that it would have to close after dealing with outstanding appeals because it was running out of funding. This means the trial of Ayyash in a separate case involving three attacks on Lebanese politicians in 2004 and 2005 is unlikely to take place.
UN chief calls on Lebanon to respect Hague court’s verdict on Hariri killing
https://arab.news/29w5g
UN chief calls on Lebanon to respect Hague court’s verdict on Hariri killing
- Iran-backed Hezbollah refuses to hand over three men convicted of involvement in the 2005 suicide blast that killed former prime minister Rafik Hariri
- The Special Tribunal for Lebanon last year announced that it will have to shut down, after dealing with outstanding appeals, because of lack of funding
Trump on Hamas response to Gaza ceasefire deal: will know in 24 hours
- Israel has earlier agreed on terms for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Friday it would probably be known in 24 hours how Palestinian militant group Hamas would respond to a proposal for a ceasefire with Israel in Gaza.
Trump said Tuesday that Israel has agreed on terms for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and warned Hamas to accept the deal before conditions worsen.
Trump announced the development as he prepares to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for talks at the White House on Monday. The US leader has been increasing pressure on the Israeli government and Hamas to broker a ceasefire and hostage agreement and bring about an end to the war in Gaza.
Darfur civilians ‘face mass atrocities and ethnic violence’
- Medical charity warns of new threat from escalation in fighting in Sudan civil war
KHARTOUM: Civilians in the Darfur region of Sudan face mass atrocities and ethnic violence in the civil war between the regular army and its paramilitary rivals, the charity Medecins Sans Frontieres warned on Thursday.
The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have sought to consolidate their power in Darfur since losing control of the capital Khartoum in March. Their predecessor, the Janjaweed militia, was accused of genocide in Darfur two decades ago.
The paramilitaries have intensified attacks on El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state which they have besieged since May 2024 in an effort to push the army out of its final stronghold in the region.
“People are not only caught in indiscriminate heavy fighting ... but also actively targeted by the Rapid Support Forces and their allies, notably on the basis of their ethnicity,” said Michel-Olivier Lacharite, Medecins Sans Frontieres’ head of emergencies. There were “threats of a full-blown assault,” on El-Fasher, which is home to hundreds of thousands of people largely cut off from food and water supplies and deprived of access to medical care, he said.
Egypt on alert as giant dam in Ethiopia completed
ADDIS ABABA: Ethiopia moved on Thursday to reassure Egypt about its water supply after completing work on a controversial giant $4 billion dam on the Blue Nile.
“To our neighbors downstream, our message is clear: the dam is not a threat, but a shared opportunity,” Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said.
“The energy and development it will generate stand to uplift not just Ethiopia. We believe in shared progress, shared energy, and shared water. Prosperity for one should mean prosperity for all.”
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is 1.8 km wide and 145 meters high, and is Africa's largest hydroelectric project. It can hold 74 billion cubic meters of water and generate more than 5,000 megawatts of power — more than double Ethiopia’s current output. It will begin full operations in September.
Egypt already suffers from severe water scarcity and sees the dam as an existential threat because the country relies on the Nile for 97 percent of its water. President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Sudan’s leader Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan met last week and “stressed their rejection of any unilateral measures in the Blue Nile basin.” They were committed to safeguarding water security in the region, Sisi’s spokesman said.
Explosive drone intercepted near Irbil airport in northern Iraq, security statement says
- The “Flight operations at the airport continued normally,” the Irbil airport authority said
IRBIL, Iraq: An explosive drone was shot down near Irbil airport in northern Iraq on Thursday, the Iraqi Kurdistan’s counter-terrorism service said in a statement.
There were no casualties reported, according to two security sources.
The “Flight operations at the airport continued normally and the airport was not affected by any damage,” the Irbil airport authority said in a statement.
The incident only caused a temporary delay in the landing of one aircraft, the statement added.
Jordanian and Vatican officials discuss promotion of Petra as destination for Christian pilgrims
- They say there is a strategic opportunity to integrate the UNESCO World Heritage Site into routes for Christian travelers
- Head of tourism authority says highlighting Petra’s significance to Christian heritage itineraries could enhance Jordan’s position on global religious tourism map
LONDON: Officials from Jordan and the Vatican met on Thursday to discuss ways in which they can cooperate to advance religious tourism, including the promotion of the ancient city of Petra as a destination for Christian pilgrims.
Fares Braizat, who chairs the board of commissioners of the Petra Development and Tourism Regional Authority, said that highlighting the significance of the UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of Christian heritage itineraries could enhance Jordan’s position on the global religious tourism map.
The country has a number of important Christian sites, the most significant of which is the location on the eastern bank of the Jordan River where Jesus is said to have been baptized by John the Baptist. Several popes have visited it, including Francis and John Paul II.
Archbishop Giovanni Pietro Dal Toso, the Vatican’s ambassador to Jordan, confirmed the interest in collaborating with Jordanian authorities, and praised the nation’s stability and its rich historical and religious heritage.
Both officials acknowledged the strategic opportunity that exists to integrate Petra into pilgrimage routes for Christian travelers, the Jordan News Agency reported.
The Petra tourism authority recently lit up the Colosseum in Rome with the signature colors of the historic Jordanian site to celebrate a twinning agreement as part of a marketing strategy to attract European visitors, and to raise Petra’s profile globally as a premier cultural and spiritual tourism destination.
The Vatican itself is also a major tourism destination, for Christian pilgrims in particular. In 2025 it is expected to welcome between 30 and 35 million visitors during its latest Jubilee Year, a significant ecclesiastical event that takes place every 25 years.
