A UN-backed tribunal on Tuesday found Hezbollah operative Salim Ayyash guilty of the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in a truck bombing 15 years ago. Ayyash was convicted in absentia.
The Feb. 14, 2005 bombing took place when over 4,000 pounds of explosives concealed inside a parked truck were detonated as Hariri's motorcade drove near the St. George Hotel in Beirut. Twenty-three people were killed, including Hariri, his bodyguards, and then-Lebanese Economy Minister Bassel Fleihan.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
"The trial chamber finds Mr. Ayyash guilty beyond reasonable doubt as a co-perpetrator of the assassination of Rafik Hariri," said David Re, the judge presiding over the Netherlands-based Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
#Statement | @KSAMOFA followed up on what was issued by @STLebanon, which pronounced its verdict in the case of the assassination of the former PM of #Lebanon, Mr. Rafik Hariri, which included a conviction of an element affiliated with #Hezbollah who committed this heinous crime.
— Foreign Ministry 🇸🇦 (@KSAmofaEN) August 18, 2020
The tribunal noted that there was insufficient evidence to convict the other three defendants in the case, Assad Sabra, 43, Hussein Oneissi, 46, and Hassan Habib Merhi, 54.
There was no evidence to directly link Syria or Hezbollah's leadership to the attack.
No date has been set at this time for Ayyash's sentencing hearing. He faces a life sentence.
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has refused to hand the four defendants over to the turbinal, saying the UN-backed panel had no jurisdiction in Lebanon.
Hariri's son, Saad, himself a former Lebanese prime minister, was in the heavily secured court for the judgment.
Following the verdict, Saudi Arabia called for Hezbollah to be "punished" for Hariri's assassination.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
"The government of Saudi Arabia views the ruling as the emergence of truth and the beginning of a process of achieving justice by chasing, arresting and punishing those involved," the kingdom's Foreign Ministry said on Twitter.
"Saudi Arabia, by calling for Hezbollah and its terrorist elements to face justice and be punished, stresses the need to protect Lebanon, the region and the world from the terrorist practices of this group," it added.
i24News contributed to this report.
