Lebanon 'will pay its share of funds in Hariri tribunal'

Lebanon's prime minister said yesterday his country will pay its share of funds for a UN-backed tribunal investigating the 2005 assassination of a Lebanese statesman, averting a political crisis in the deeply divided country at a critical time in the Middle East. Najeeb Mikati said the transfer of Lebanon's $36 million share in the required funding for the Netherlands-based court was made yesterday. "It is a decision that reflects Lebanon's commitment to its international obligations and the principles of justice," he told reporters. The UN investigation into the death of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and the degree to which the Lebanese authorities should cooperate with it, has become one of the most divisive issues in Lebanese politics in recent years. Hariri was killed by a suicide truck bomb on February 14, 2005, in one of the most dramatic political assassinations in the Middle East. A billionaire businessman, he was at the time Lebanon's most prominent politician. The court has indicted four members of the Hezbollah group which, along with its allies, holds a majority in Cabinet. Hezbollah strongly denies the accusations and refuses to fund the court. Vital step It was not immediately clear how Mikati secured the funding, and he did not address the issue at his news conference. Earlier, he had threatened to step down if the Cabinet refused to fund the tribunal at a session scheduled late last night. The Cabinet session was postponed — suggesting politicians had reached an agreement in which funding for the court would be secured through sources other than the Cabinet. Mikati portrayed the funding as a bold and necessary step to protect Lebanon from outside pressures.