Lebanon Tribunal adjourns trial till May

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) on Wednesday announced that the trial sessions of the five accused in the killing of ex-Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri have been adjounred until at least early to mid-May. The STL in a statment in Leidschendam outside the Hague said the reason for the postponement is to allow defence counsel for the fifth accused Hassan Habib Merhi adequate time to prepare for trial and to conduct their own investigations. The Trial Chamber on 11 February decided to join the two cases of Merhi with the other four accused. "The Trial Chamber therefore concluded that joining the two proceedings would better protect the rights of all five Accused to a fair and expeditious trial, " it noted. All of the five accused are indicted for their alleged role in the 14 February 2005 attack in Beirut that killed Hariri and scores of other people.