Special Tribunal for Lebanon

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is a tribunal of international character.

The STL was inaugurated on 1 March 2009 and has four organs:
 Chambers
 The Office of the Prosecutor
 The Defence Office
 Registry
The STL's headquarters are on the outskirts of The Hague, the Netherlands and the
tribunal also has an office in Beirut, Lebanon.
Its primary mandate is to hold trials for the people accused of carrying out the
attack of 14 February 2005 which killed 22 people, including the former prime
minister of Lebanon, Rafik Hariri, and injured many others.
The tribunal was established following a request by the government of Lebanon to
the United Nations. The agreement between Lebanon and the UN was not ratified,
and the UN brought its provisions into force through UN Security Council
Resolution 1757.
It is an independent, judicial organisation composed of Lebanese and international
judges. It is neither a UN court nor part of the Lebanese judicial system. It does,
however, try people under Lebanese criminal law. The tribunal is also the first of
its kind to deal with terrorism as a discrete crime.

Jurisdiction of the tribunal

The tribunal has "jurisdiction over persons responsible for the attack of 14
February 2005 resulting in the death of the former Lebanese prime minister Rafik
Hariri and in the death or injury of other persons" (Article 1, STL statute).
 The tribunal also has jurisdiction over other attacks in Lebanon between 1 October
2004 and 12 December 2005 if it is proven that they are connected to the events of
14 February and are of similar nature and gravity. The mandate also allows the
tribunal to have jurisdiction over crimes carried out on any later date, decided by
the parties and with the consent of the UN Security Council, if they are connected
to the 14 February 2005 attack.
To seek jurisdiction for these cases, the Office of the Prosecutor must
submit prima facie evidence of a connection such as:
 criminal intent
 the purpose behind the attacks

 the nature of the victims targeted

 the pattern of the attacks (modus operandi)
 and the perpetrators

Chambers

Chambers is one of the four organs of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. It operates
independently from the other three: the Office of the Prosecutor, the Defence
Office and the Registry.

Chambers is composed of 12 judges, who are divided into four sections:

 Pre-Trial Chamber: one international judge

 Trial Chamber I (STL-11-01): one Lebanese, two international plus two
alternate judges (one Lebanese, one international) who can serve in addition to or act
as replacements to the Trial judges
 Trial Chamber II (STL-18-10): One Lebanese and two international judges
 Appeals Chamber: two Lebanese and three international judges
This mixture of Lebanese and international judges means that Lebanese law is
applied correctly whilst guaranteeing the impartiality of the proceedings. The
considerable experience of the Tribunal's judges ensures that the highest
international standards of criminal justice are followed.