Secretary-General Takes Note of Special Tribunal’s Life-Sentence Verdict in Former Lebanon Prime Minister’s Killing

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary‑General António Guterres:

The Secretary-General takes note of today’s delivery by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon of the sentencing decision of Mr. Salim Jamil Ayyash to five concurrent sentences of life imprisonment.

On 18 August 2020, Mr. Ayyash was convicted in relation to the 14 February 2005 attack in Beirut that killed former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and 21 others, and injured 226 more.  Mr. Ayyash remains at large.

The Secretary-General’s thoughts are with the victims of the 14 February 2005 attack, and their families.  The sentencing reflects the international community’s commitment to justice for the terrible crimes committed on that day.

The Secretary‑General urges the international community to continue supporting the independent judicial proceedings that remain before the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is an independent court of law established at the request of the Government of Lebanon pursuant to an agreement between the United Nations and the Government of Lebanon that was brought into effect by the United Nations Security Council.