Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06BEIRUT2970
2006-09-13 14:44:00
CONFIDENTIAL//NOFORN
Embassy Beirut
Cable title:  

LEBANON: RIZK ON HARIRI TRIBUNAL STATUTE

Tags:  PREL KCRM LE 
pdf how-to read a cable
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TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5570
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RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
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RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO PRIORITY 0275
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 1134
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIRUT 002970 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
NOFORN

STATE NEA/ELA FOR ABERCROMBIE-WHINSTANLEY/WILLIAMS/DONICK
NSC FOR ABRAMS/DORAN/MARCHESE/HARDING

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/13/2016
TAGS: PREL KCRM LE
SUBJECT: LEBANON: RIZK ON HARIRI TRIBUNAL STATUTE

REF: STATE 140003

Classified By: Jeffrey D. Feltman, Ambassador. Reason 1.4 (b) and (d).

SUMMARY
--------

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIRUT 002970

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
NOFORN

STATE NEA/ELA FOR ABERCROMBIE-WHINSTANLEY/WILLIAMS/DONICK
NSC FOR ABRAMS/DORAN/MARCHESE/HARDING

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/13/2016
TAGS: PREL KCRM LE
SUBJECT: LEBANON: RIZK ON HARIRI TRIBUNAL STATUTE

REF: STATE 140003

Classified By: Jeffrey D. Feltman, Ambassador. Reason 1.4 (b) and (d).

SUMMARY
--------------


1. (C/NF) During a September 11 meeting with Ambassador and
poloff at his Asrafieh home, Lebanese Minister of Justice
Charles Rizk discussed the draft statute to establish a
tribunal to try suspects in the Hariri assassination (and
possibly other related attacks). He focused particularly on
the issues of legal jurisdiction of the tribunal to try
people for "crimes against humanity" and the temporal
juristdiction of the court to cover all "related" attacks
between October 2004 and December 2005. Rizk's main concerns
are that the UN Security Council be united on whatever draft
they forward to the GOL for approval and that Hizballah not
scuttle the tribunal. Rizk also gave a frank appraisal of
his friend President Emile Lahoud's state of mind. END
SUMMARY.

REWORKING "CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY"
--------------


2. (C) Rizk said that his five-hour meeting with Nicolas
Michel during the latter's visit to Beirut last week had gone
well, and had mostly focused around Article 3 of the draft
statute regarding "Crimes Against Humanity." Michel
explained to Rizk that this was only inserted into the
statute to provide against immunity for heads of state.
However, Rizk understands that the Russians and Chinese are
opposed to the current formulation since it is similar to
that in the Rome Statute for the International Criminal
Court. Why, they ask, does a separate tribunal need to be
established at all? Rizk said French Ambassador to Lebanon
Bernard Emie had also expressed personal reservations to
Article 3 since it seems "inappropriate" following the recent
33 days of "Israeli crimes against humanity." The Ambassador
noted that the USG does not like the inclusion of Article 3
in the statute either.


3. (C) This potential P5 disunity poses a political problem
for Rizk, who added that he cannot sell the statute to
Hizballah and Syria's defenders in Lebanon without clear
Security Council backing. At the end of their meeting, Rizk

asked Michel to try and find an acceptable formulation in New
York. Rizk said he had brainstormed on the Article 3 issue,
and suggests the following: simply drop the heading "Article
Three - Crimes Against Humanity" and append the relevant text
-- which does not contain the term "crimes against humanity"
-- as a second paragraph under Article 1. Rizk believes that
this rearrangement would remove any direct reference to
"crimes against humanity" per se, but would retain the
important text which -- and on this Rizk isn't sure -- still
provides against immunities. He invited any USG formulations
on how to achieve the objective of making sure that the
special tribunal overrides any presidential immunities
contained in national laws.

TEMPORAL JURISDICTION; NEED NASRALLAH BUY-IN
--------------


4. (C/NF) Rizk, who has been advised not to go out much due
to death threats, said he plans to see Hassan Nasrallah in
the coming days to review the draft statute with him (though
presumably not with updated Article 3 language). The
Ambassador queried this approach, but Rizk argued that it is
of more use to negotiate with Nasrallah than with Nabih Berri
or Lahoud. "If Nasrallah is ok, then Berri is ok," Rizk
claimed, "I want to take Nasrallah head-on. That will solve
Lahoud, Berri, and the two Hizballah Cabinet ministers."
Rizk said he is just waiting for a call from Nasrallah's
people, who will give hime an hour or two lead time before
taking him to a meeting place. (When the Ambassador talked
with Rizk by phone on 9/13 to thank him for help in securing
the release of a U.S. ship detained at the Beirut port, Rizk
confirmed that he had not yet seen Nasrallah.)


BEIRUT 00002970 002 OF 002



5. (C/NF) Rizk suspects that Nasrallah will balk at the
current Article 1 and Article 5 language of the draft statute
giving the tribunal jurisdiction for the Hariri assassination
as well as "other related acts of a similar nature" between
01 October 2004 and 31 December 2005. Anticipating that he
may have to concede something to Nasrallah on this point,
Rizk asked for the Ambassador's advice. Reflecting the USG
position in reftel, the Ambassador suggested that the "other
related acts" language could be tightened somewhat to more
clearly spell out the links -- perhaps through similar core
perpetrators -- to the Hariri assassination. Rizk liked the
idea and said he would keep it in his back pocket when
dealing with Nasrallah.


6. (C) Rizk said that his goal is to deliver the statute
without "splitting the Hariris and Hizballah." According to
Rizk, the Hariri camp -- Saad, Nazek, and former Justice
Minister Bahij Tabbareh -- are pleased with the draft statute
as it is. Noting that he does not belive Siniora is "aware
of the subtlety" involved in gaining GOL approval without
causing a Cabinet split, Rizk anticipates that it will be
several months -- perhaps as late as January/February --
before the statute is approved and ready for signing.

GLOOM IN BA'ABDA
--------------


7. (C) As far as his old friend Emile Lahoud is concerned,
Rizk says that the President dearly wants to be involved in
the minutiae of the negotiations on the statute, and claims
that he has the sole constitutional right to approve the
statute since it should -- in Lahoud's mind -- be classified
as an international treaty. Rizk said that he will just work
around Lahoud, who has grown "paranoid" and "difficult to
manage," tending to blame all of his problems on French
President Chirac. "If it rains in Vietnam," quipped Rizk,
"then it must have been Chirac's fault." Rizk said that for
the first time in Lahoud's tenure the mood among the staff of
Ba'abda Palace is turning sour. "People are complaining,"
Rizk confided, "It has built up."

BRAMMERTZ REPORT: MORE OF SAME
--------------


8. (C/NF) According to Rizk, Lahoud is desperate to have
former presidential security chief Mustapha Hamdan -- one of
four security chiefs imprisoned in May 2005 on suspicion of
involvement in the Hariri assassination -- released as soon
as possible. Rizk asked UNIIIC Commissioner Serge Brammertz
three months ago about Muhammad Zuhayr Siddiq, whose
testimony -- since discredited -- led to the chiefs'
imprisonment, and why the chiefs had not been released.
According to Rizk, Brammertz told him that he is not relying
on Siddiq's testimony, but has "other evidence" against the
former security heads. Even so, Rizk expects the upcoming
Brammertz report to be simply another "executive report" with
no specific finger-pointing.


9. (C) Aware that Rizk entertains his own designs on the
Presidency, the Ambassador asked him his position on dealing
with Hizballah and the Shi'a generally. Rizk said he has
taken care to cultivate a relationship with Hassan Nasrallah,
but hopes that further "poles" of independent Shi'a
leadership can be developed. Remarking that Syrian exile
Abdel Halim Khaddam told him that Berri is now being
sidelined by the SARG, Rizk feels that Berri may be willing
to challenge Hizballah's hegemony a little more (as he did
last week in having his Amal ministers vote for the request
for UNIFIL maritime assistance, contrary to Hizballah).
Though Hizballah has been weakened in the recent conflict,
Rizk feels that this in itself will not cause the group to
disarm. He suggested that forward movement on the Sheba'a
Farms issue, while not a "magic potion", would improve the
GOL's position vis-a-vis Hizballah's weapons by removing the
group's militant raison d'etre.
FELTMAN