Beirut

www.stl-tsl.org

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is a tribunal:

Of an international character — its structure, rules and proceedings are based on the highest standards of international justice. Its President, Prose-cutor, Registrar and Head of the Defence Office, as well as the majority of judges and staff, are international. It was established by a resolution of the United Nations Security Council which is binding upon Lebanon;

Which will give a voice to victims — victims are entitled to participate in the proceedings of the Tribunal if they fulfil certain criteria, following a decision by the Pre-Trial Judge;

With a Defence Office — the first among international tribunals to have an autonomous Defence Office which has equal standing to the other three organs of the Tribunal: the Chambers, the Office of the Prosecutor and the Registry.

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is not:

A war crimes tribunal — but has a more focused mandate to deal with the attack of 14 February 2005 which killed 23 persons, including former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, and with related crimes of a similar gravity and nature that took place in Lebanon between October 2004 and December 2005, or later if certain conditions are met;

Importing foreign justice — it will apply the Lebanese criminal code in relation to certain crimes and includes aspects of the Lebanese criminal procedure. It has Lebanese Judges, as well as a Lebanese Deputy Prosecutor, a Lebanese Deputy Chief of the Defence Office and Lebanese staff;

The same as the United Nations International Independent Investigation Commission (UNIIIC): the UNIIIC was established to assist the Lebanese authorities investigate the attacks that occurred in Lebanon. The STL is a separate independent international criminal Tribunal which will try accused persons in public proceedings

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL)

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) is the first international court with juris-diction over the crime of terrorism in times of peace. It was established by United Nations (UN) Security Council Resolution 1757, adopted on 30 May 2007, and began its work on 1 March 2009.

History And Establishment

On 14 February 2005 an attack in Beirut killed former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri and another 23 persons, and injured many more. In March 2005 the UN Secretary-General dispatched a fact-finding mission to look into the circumstances, causes and consequences of the attack. The mission concluded that an independent inter-national investigation was needed to uncover the truth. On 13 December 2005 the Lebanese government requested the United Nations to establish a Tribunal of an international character to prosecute those responsible for the attack of 14 February 2005 and other attacks if certain conditions are met. Following negotiations the UN and the Lebanese government came to an agreement on the establishment of the STL. The agreement between Lebanon and the UN on the establishment of the Tribunal was not ratified and the UN brought the provisions of the agreement into force through Security Council Resolution 1757. The STL opened its doors on 1 March 2009 in Leidschendam, The Netherlands. It also has an office in Beirut.

Mandate And Jurisdiction

The STL is an independent judicial organisation. The STL is a mixed, or hybrid, court – it is composed of both national and international Judges and staff. It applies

provisions of the Lebanese Criminal Code relating to the prosecution and punishment of acts of terrorism and crimes and offences against life and personal integrity, among others. The Tribunal’s primary mandate is to hold trials of individuals accused of carrying out the attack of 14 February 2005 which resulted in the death of former Prime

The UN International Indepen-dent Investigation Commission (UNIIIC) was a UN institution established by Security Council Resolution 1595 in 2005. It should not be confused with the Tribunal. It was an entirely separate body which, unlike the Tribunal, had no role in prosecutions or trials but was limited to gathering evidence and assisting the Lebanese authorities in conducting their investigations into the Hariri assas-sination. Immediately following the establishment of the STL in 2009 the information gathered by the UNIIIC was handed over to the STL Prosecutor.

Minister Rafiq Hariri and in the death or injury of other persons. The Tribunal also has jurisdiction over:

• Attacks carried out in Lebanon between 1 October 2004 and 12 December 2005 if they are connected with the attack carried out against Rafiq Hariri and are of a similar nature and gravity. The Pre-Trial Judge will determine if these requirements are met once the Pros-ecutor requests a ruling on this matter;

• Attacks carried out in Lebanon after 12 December 2005 if they are connected with the attack carried out against Rafiq Hariri and are of a similar nature and gravity, and if the Government of Lebanon and the UN, with the consent of the Security Council, agree to extend the STL’s jurisdiction.

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is the first international tribunal to rule on the crime of terrorism in times of peace.

Organisation

The Tribunal has four independent divisions or ‘organs’: the Chambers; the Office of the Prosecutor; the Registry; and the Defence Office.

ChambersThe STL Chambers comprises three distinct sections - one international Pre-Trial

Judge, a Trial Chamber of three Judges (one Lebanese and two international, plus two alternate Judges, one of whom is Lebanese and the other international), and an Appeals Chamber of five Judges (two Lebanese and three international).

All Judges must be persons of high moral char-acter, impartiality and integrity, with extensive judicial experience. The Lebanese Judges were appointed by the UN Secretary-General from a list of 12 names provided by the Lebanese government, following a proposal from the Lebanese Supreme Council of the Judiciary. The international Judges were nominated by UN member states. All the appointments were made upon the recommendation of a Selection Panel made up of two Judges currently sitting on or retired from an international tribunal and a repre-sentative of the Secretary-General.

The Pre-trial Judge has a unique role: he may request deferrals of cases from the domestic courts of Lebanon, review and confirm indictments, issue arrest warrants, transfer requests, and any other orders required for the conduct of the investigation and for the prep-aration of a fair and expeditious trial. He may also decide on deten-tion matters and organise and facilitate the work of the parties in the pre-trial phase.

The Trial Chamber hears the evidence presented in court and decides on the accused’s criminal responsibility. Either the Prosecutor or the Defence may lodge an appeal on grounds of perceived errors of law or fact. The Appeals Chamber determines appeals and may affirm, reverse or revise the Trial Chamber’s judgment and/or sentence.

The Presiding Judge of the Appeals Chamber is the President of the Tribunal. The President represents the institution as a whole and is responsible for its effective functioning.

Office of the Prosecutor (OTP)The OTP is led by an international Prosecutor who is assisted by a Lebanese

Deputy Prosecutor. The Prosecutor is responsible for investigating and prosecuting the persons responsible for the crimes falling within the Tribunal’s jurisdiction. The Prosecutor acts independently. He does not seek or receive instructions from any government or any other source. The Prosecutor’s decisions to investigate, file an indictment, prosecute or file an appeal are based on legal criteria and the evidence available. The Prosecutor was appointed by the UN Secretary-General upon consul-tation with the Government of Lebanon. The OTP has a competitively selected staff, which includes lawyers, police officers, forensic experts and analysts. The OTP is organised on the basis of multi-disciplinary teams and operates from offices in Leidschendam and Beirut.

RegistryThe Registry is responsible for the good administration and servicing of the

tribunal, making it in effect the engine room for many external and internal func-tions. It is led by the Registrar, who is appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations and has a wide range of responsibilities. The Registrar prepares the Tribunal’s budget and plays a crucial role in securing the necessary funds. He also has an external liaison and diplomatic function with Lebanon as well as donor states and the Management Committee, UN member states, The Netherlands (as the host country) and other international courts and non-governmental organisations.

Through its Public Affairs and Outreach sections, the Registry also serves as the Tribunal’s channel of communication with the general public. While the Public Affairs section focuses on international and Lebanese media and is responsible for the timely dissemination of information about the work of the STL, the role of Outreach is to increase understanding of the Tribunal’s work primarily among the Lebanese population by interacting with legal professionals, NGO representatives, academics and others.

Though the judicial process is under the control of Chambers, it is the Regis-try’s responsibility to ensure that the process unfolds smoothly and efficiently by

providing support to Chambers and all parties participating in the proceedings. In addition, the Registrar oversees the Victims and Witnesses Unit, which provides support to all those testifying before the STL, the Victim Participation Unit, which assists the participation of victims in the proceedings, the Court Management Section, which is the custodian of the court records and archives of the Tribunal, and the Language Services Section which provides interpretation and translation services in the Tribunal’s three official languages – English, Arabic and French. The

Registrar also oversees the important Safety and Security Section, in charge of securing the Tribu-nal’s premises both in Leidschendam and in Beirut, as well as the Detention Facility of the Tribunal in The Netherlands which will house accused persons once they have been transferred to The Hague.

The Registry is also responsible for the overall administration of the Tribunal which includes human resources, finance, procurement, informa-tion technology and general services.

Defence OfficeThe STL is the first international tribunal to have a Defence Office (DO) as an

organ independent of the Registry which is endowed with the necessary statu-tory and regulatory powers to promote the rights of suspects and accused so as to ensure the highest standards of fairness in the proceedings before the Special Tribunal. The DO is mandated to protect the rights of the defence, provide legal and administrative support to the defence, and to establish a list of defence counsel who may appear before the Tribunal. The Defence Office will not represent the accused. Once an indictment is confirmed, the accused will be able to appoint defence counsel of his/her choice from the list maintained by the DO. The Defence Office will pay the costs of the accused’s defence if s/he does not have the financial means to do so.

Financing

Fifty one per cent of the STL’s budget comes from voluntary contributions of UN member states, while the remaining 49 per cent is contributed by the Lebanese government.

The STL is not a UN institution and is not funded from the regular UN budget. It does not report to the Security Council or the General Assembly, but it does have links with the UN due to its establishment through a Security Council resolution.

Management Committee

The STL’s Management Committee is made up of representatives from the major donor countries of the Tribunal, including Lebanon. It sets policy and provides advice on non-judicial aspects of the Tribunal’s work. It has no role in the judicial proceedings. It provides external management oversight dealing with such issues as review and approval of the STL’s budget, fundraising and encouraging all states to cooperate with the Tribunal.

Criminal Proceedings

The Tribunal’s proceedings are governed by its Rules of Procedure and Evidence, which were drafted by the STL Judges. These rules are not the same as those of the Lebanese Code on Criminal Procedure. Drawing from the experience of other inter-national tribunals and both the common law (adversarial) and civil law (inquisitorial) traditions, these rules regulate the conduct of trials and ensure the application of the highest standards of international justice.

During the investigation phase the OTP collects and analyses evidence. When the Prosecutor considers that there is sufficient evidence that a suspect(s) has committed a crime(s) within the Tribunal’s jurisdiction, he files an indictment with the Pre-Trial Judge for confirmation. If satisfied that a prima facie case against a suspect(s) exists, the Pre-Trial Judge will confirm the indictment.

The indictment is based only on the evidence collected by the Prosecution. The accused is presumed innocent and, with the assistance of defence counsel, has the opportunity to present evidence at trial. The burden of proof is on the Prosecution and the standard of proof is ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’. Based on the totality of the evidence, the Judges of the Trial Chamber will make a finding of the accused’s guilt or inno-cence and issue a judgement. If the Trial Chamber finds an accused guilty of one or more crimes, it may impose a sentence of life imprisonment or a lesser term.

Either the Prosecutor or the Defence may appeal the Trial Chamber’s Judgement and/or the sentence imposed. The Judgment of the Appeals Chamber is final.

An indictment is a document setting out the Prosecutor’s case against a person or persons whom the Prosecutor believes is or are responsible for a certain crime(s). An indictment contains the names and particulars of the accused, a description of the relevant background information, a list of the crimes the accused allegedly committed, and an Annex containing the names of the victims. An indictment is not a finding of guilt – it is the step that launches the judicial process before the Tribunal, should the pre-trial judge confirm the indictment.

Unlike at other international tribunals, at the STL there is a possibility of proceedings taking place in the absence of the accused. Trials in absentia will only be held, however, in exceptional circumstances. In such cases, the same rules apply on pre-trial, trial and appellate proceedings. An accused who has failed to take part in proceedings before the STL has a right to a re-trial if they subsequently appear before the Tribunal. If such an accused appears once the Trial Chamber has rendered its judgment, s/he may accept the judgment and/or sentence imposed, request a re-trial or appeal the judgment and/or sentence.

Sentencing and Enforcement

A person who is convicted by the Tribunal may be given a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, to be served in a state designated by the President of the STL from a list of states that have expressed willingness to accept convicted persons. Unlike under Lebanese law, there is no death penalty at the STL.

STL Press Office

Tel: +31 (0) 70 800 3560 (English/French)

Tel: +31 (0) 70 800 3828 (Arabic/English)

E-mail: stl-pressoffice@un.org

STL Outreach office (Beirut)

Tel: +961 4 538 129 (Arabic, French, English)

E-mail: stl-outreach@un.org