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The Special Tribunal for Lebanon: The UN on Trial?

Briefing Paper
Nadim Shehadi and Elizabeth Wilmshurst, July 2007

Download Paper here

• The Special Tribunal for Lebanon has been created in response to demands for 'The Truth' following the assassination of Rafiq Hariri. This represents a new departure for a country which previously employed a 'forgive and forget' formula of conflict resolution.
• The Tribunal joins a growing number of courts and tribunals with international features, but it is unprecedented in the manner of its creation and in its nature.
• The UN Security Council has intervened despite strong opposition on legal and political grounds. It has also overridden Lebanese constitutional procedures, but in so doing it has provided a possible solution to a difficult political situation in Lebanon and laid a claim for the rule of law to prevail over violence.
• There are high stakes for the UN in Lebanon. The UN was seen to have failed to protect Lebanon in the 2006 conflict between Israel and Hizbullah. The Tribunal is part of extensive UN involvement in Lebanon which is viewed by some as welcome protection and by others as part of a conspiracy against Syria and Iran.
• The creation of the Tribunal may have significant consequences for Lebanon and the international community. There could be further terrorist attacks and assassinations in Lebanon and confrontation with Syria.
• Failing to set up the Tribunal would have been interpreted as a green light for assassinations and terrorism to continue with impunity in Lebanon. Any political cost involved in setting up the Tribunal will be offset by the higher cost of not doing so.