Khamenei: Any Hariri findings by int'l tribunal invalid

Iranian's supreme leader: "This tribunal is a rubber-stamp, one whose verdict is null and void whatever it is."

By JPOST.COM STAFF, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Khamenei 311 (photo credit: Associated Press)
Khamenei 311
(photo credit: Associated Press)
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Monday that any findings by the international tribunal into the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri would be viewed as invalid.
"This tribunal is a rubber-stamp, one whose verdict is null and void whatever it is," Reuters quoting Khamenei as saying, citing a state television report. Khamenei made the comments during a meeting with the emir of Qatar.
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The international tribunal investigating Hariri's assassination postponed the publication of its conclusions until after the Christian holidays marking the new year. French security sources told Lebanese newspaper As-Safir this past week that the tribunal changed the date of publication to maintain stability in Lebanon.
Tension over the tribunal has paralyzed Lebanon in the past weeks amid speculation Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare will indict members of Hizbullah.
Hariri, a Sunni Muslim, was Lebanon's most prominent politician in the years after the 1975-1990 civil war. He and 22 other people were killed by a massive truck bomb on Feb. 14, 2005. At the time, he was trying to limit Syria's influence in Lebanon.