Judicial developments

The Prosecutor v. Ayyash et al. (STL-11-01)1

1On 1 December, protected witness PRH 416 testi-fied before the Trial Chamber. The witness worked as a bodyguard for someone he knew as Sami Issa throughout his employment until late January 2005. The Prosecution claims that Sami Issa was an alias for the Accused Mustafa Amine Badreddine.

The Prosecution asked the witness about his back-ground and where he worked before he met Mr Issa, the job interview he had with him, as well as about the kind of work he did when he was hired. The witness confirmed that Mr Issa owned three jewelry shops called Samino. He also said that he used to work six days a week and that there were four bodyguards including himself, accompanying Mr Issa. The Prose-cution asked the witness about the various locations he encountered in his duties, including the pick-up and drop-off points of the cars he drove, and where he met him on some occasions. He was also asked about the cars Mr Issa had. He said that he saw him driving six

1 This section provides an overview of courtroom hearings in the Ayyash et al. case only. All the public filings in this case are available on our website: http://www.stl-tsl.org/en/the-cases/stl-11-01/filings

cars, which were different than the cars the bodyguards drove.

The witness was asked to identify certain phone numbers associated with particular names that he was in contact with in 2004 and 2005. He was also asked about Mr Mohammed Chaker, the manager of Samino jewelry shops, and whose mobile phone number is among those numbers. The witness said that some-times he used to see Mr Chaker on a daily basis and other times he would communicate with him only by phone. The witness was then shown in court a photo of someone he confirmed to be Mr Chaker. He also confirmed his own number during the period between September 2004 and January 2005.

The witness was additionally asked about different loca-tions that he had identified earlier on a Zawarib Atlas map when he met with Prosecution investigators. One

December 2015The STL Bulletin provides a monthly overview of the latest developments, news and visits to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. It is not a judicial document with legal authority. It is one of a number of public information documents produced by the Tribunal. You can view them all at http://www.stl-tsl.org/en/news-and-press.

STLBulletin

www.stl-tsl.orgDokter van der Stamstraat 1, 2265 BC Leidschendam, Netherlands ✦ PO Box 115, 2260 AC Leidschendam, Netherlands.

For more information please contact the Public Information and Communications Section: stl-pressoffice@un.org Tel : +31 (0) 70 800 3560 / 3828 and +961 4 538 100 (Beirut) www.twitter.com/stlebanon www.facebook.com/stlebanon www.youtube.com/stlebanon www.flickr.com/stlebanon

All public transcripts in the Ayyash et al. case are available on our website in Arabic, English and French.

of these locations is an underground parking lot that he marked on map, where the bodyguards used to pick up and park Mr Issa’s cars that they drove according to the witness. He was also asked about another parking lot in a commercial center where he used to only pick up the cars. The witness said that he would use the car that Mr Issa instructed him to take and that he would usually come to find the cars washed and filled with gas. The third location was an area close to Samino jewelry shop in Furn-El-Chebbak. The witness said that he would wait there while Mr Issa was in the shop.

On 2 December, protected witness PRH 416 continued to testify before the Trial Chamber. The Prosecution asked the witness whether he and his colleagues had permits from the Lebanese authorities for the weapons they carried. The witness confirmed that they did and it was Mr Issa who arranged them. The witness also added that he never saw Mr Issa carrying a gun, but when he started working for him he showed him a gun’s permit.

The Prosecution asked the witness about a set of phone calls he made and received in September 2004. He was also questioned about how often he went to Jounieh. He said he used to go there regularly with Mr Issa, almost daily or at least three times a week and that sometimes the witness went there to meet his girl-friend. In addition PRH 416 was asked about Mr Issa’s habits when he accompanied him to public places. He said that sometimes he would enter these loca-tions normally and other times he would be keen not to be recognised. The Prosecution also asked if there was anything physically distinctive about Mr Issa. The witness said that he had a problem in his right knee that made him limp.

The witness was also asked about a car accident Mr Issa had while he and other body guards were accom-panying him. He said that some Lebanese authorities and a lieutenant-colonel from the Syrian intelligence came to the accident scene. The witness was further asked about Mr Issa’s cars and if he had ever fixed license plates on them. He said that it depended on the instructions; Mr Issa would usually tell the bodyguards which license plate to fix on the escort vehicles and on his vehicles, as he had many plates. He also added that Mr Issa owned a Lebanese military intelligence license plate which he would instruct the witness to fix either on his car or the cars the bodyguards drove. The witness explained that in the normal course of his duties, the military license plate was always either on his car or Mr Issa’s car.

On 3 December, the Prosecution continued to examine PRH 416. The witness was shown two photo-graphs of a person, which he identified to be of Mr Issa. The witness confirmed that the first photo is how Mr Issa looked like when he knew him from 2002 until January 2005, and the second one he said had the same shape of face and features like Mr Issa.

Defence Counsel for Mr Badreddine cross-examined the witness. He was asked questions that explored his recollection of certain events. He was questioned about the age of Mr Issa when he was working for him. The witness confirmed what he said in his witness state-ment that while he was working for him, Mr Issa was between 33 and 36 years old.

Additionally, the witness was asked questions about Mr Issa’s family. He confirmed that he did not know them, and that he did not know where Mr Issa lived in Beirut. He was also asked about Mr Issa’s behavior, his girlfriends and his cars.

The witness also spoke about the management of the jewelry shops, saying Mr Chaker was managing the shops in constant coordination with Mr Issa. The witness was also asked about Mr Issa’s confession and accent, which he confirmed as a Shiite Muslim and had a southern Lebanese accent.

The witness stated he started his work with Mr Issa in the summer of 2002, that he was interviewed at the shop, and that he started working as a security guard for Mr Issa at the Mar-Elias branch. A month and a half later he started working as his bodyguard. He said he did not have Mr Issa’s number until four to six months into his employment, and that he used to contact Mr Chaker or someone else and then Mr Issa would contact him.

On 4 December, Defence Counsel for Mr Badreddine continued to cross-examine protected witness PRH 416. The witness was shown in court a document that contained a list of telephone numbers that belonged to employees who worked for Samino jewelry and was asked about those people. He was also asked about when he ended his employment with Mr Issa. He said it was at the end of 2004, adding that he returned to work with him and then resigned again in January 2005. The witness explained that he left his work mainly because he did not receive health insurance and he used to leave work very late every day.

The witness was also questioned about phone calls and SMS messages exchanged between him and Mr Issa after he stopped working for him. He explained

Document provided by the Public Information and Communications Section of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon

2

that he faced a problem, and Mr Issa was calling him asking if he needed help. When the witness was also questioned about the last time he saw Mr Issa, he said it was in 2006 or 2007. He was also questioned in more detail about a photo of Mr Issa that was shown by the Prosecution in court.

On 4 December, Ms Alia El-Arab testified before the Trial Chamber via video link. The witness was asked about the statement she gave on 9 September 2014. Ms El-Arab is the daughter of Mr Yahya El-Arab, former chief of security for the late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, who was killed as a result of the 14 February 2005 attack. In her statement she said that her father also acted as an intermediary between the former Prime Minister Hariri and the Syrian officials for a long time.

During the questioning by the Legal Representative of Victims, Ms El-Arab was asked about her family and the last time she saw her father. She was also asked about her recollection of the events of 14 February 2005 and about what her family went through because of her father’s death. She explained that the Tribunal has been a great source of relief for the family.

On 7 December, PRH 416 appeared again before the Trial Chamber for cross-examination by the Defence Counsel for Mr Badreddine. The witness was ques-tioned about some of the answers he gave during his examination-in-chief by the Prosecution. The Counsel also asked the witness why during the Prosecution’s cross-examination he said that he did not work for Mr Issa for a third period of time for three months in 2007. The witness explained that he was working in a certain establishment during that period and he was not able to remember the dates when he worked for him so he said that he does not remember if he worked for him or not.

The Prosecution re-examined PRH 416. He was asked whether Mr Issa communicated with anybody else using the radio system and if he ever saw him use it to communicate with his friends or casual acquaintances. The witness responded in the negative, and explained that Mr Issa would tell his bodyguards to avoid staying on the same frequency, so they had to change the frequency one to three times per week.

On 7 December protected witness PRH 306 testified before the Trial Chamber. The witness was an employee of Mr Issa working in his jewelry shops for a number of years. He said Mr Issa did not know much about jewelry but was the person who made the decisions regarding the business.

On 8 December, PRH 306 continued to testify before the Trial Chamber. The witness was asked about how Mr Issa’s jewelry shops operated. He also spoke about his work during that period, saying that he was in charge of the sales department in the Furn-El-Chebbak shop when he started and then he moved from one shop to the other whenever it was necessary. When asked about Mr Issa’s bodyguards, he said that in the beginning Mr Issa did not have any, and then he interviewed and chose four who started accompanying him. The witness also spoke about one time in late 2004, when someone came to the Furn-El-Chebbak shop and asked for gold coins, in which his colleague told him that he was the brother of the former Head of the Syrian Intelligence services in Lebanon, Brigadier-General Rustom Ghaz-aleh. PRH 306 added that back then Mr Issa said that the brother of Mr Ghazaleh should not go to the Furn-El-Chebbak shop but to the Mar-Elias one, because he was a customer there.

He was also asked about the locations of the three branches of the Samino jewelry shops. The witness said that he remembered that the Bourj-Hammoud branch was closed on 14 February 2005, the day of the assas-sination of the late Prime Minister Hariri and it was never reopened after that. He added that he continued to work in one of the other two shops for around a month before he left in March 2005.

The witness was further asked about Samino jewelry sponsoring events, PRH 306 explained that they did that as a sort of advertisement for their jewelry brand but Mr Issa did not attend those events. He was asked about the physical appearance of Mr Issa and his habits, and was shown in court and asked about two photos. The first photo was given to the Prosecution by the witness during his interview. As for the second one shown to him, it was attached to an application form submitted to the Lebanese American University. The witness said that the second photo looked like Mr Issa, but it was not how he knew him, he explained that he looked younger in the photo. The witness was also asked about some of the SMS messages exchanged between his phone number and Mr Issa’s number.

On 9 December, Defence Counsel for Mr Badreddine cross-examined PRH 306. The witness was questioned about some aspects of the evidence he gave during his examination-in-chief by the Prosecution and about some of the answers he gave to the Prosecution inves-tigators during his witness interview. He was ques-tioned about his job interview with Mr Issa, his work with him, the setup of the three branches of Samino

Document provided by the Public Information and Communications Section of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon

3

jewelry, as well as about the events that Samino jewelry sponsored.

The witness was further questioned about Mr Issa, his appearance and confession. He was also asked about his visit to Mr Issa’s apartment in Jounieh. He confirmed that he visited him two to three times and saw what was inside of his apartment but said he did not know how long Mr Issa stayed there. The witness was also questioned about the telephone numbers of his former colleagues and bodyguards working for Mr Issa. He explained that he wrote some of those numbers in a phone directory and saved others on his mobile phone or on his desktop. The witness was also shown in court and questioned about two photos of a person he iden-tified as Mr Issa during his examination-in-chief. The witness stated that in the second photo, the person of interest might be wearing a shirt that he gave Mr Issa as a birthday gift.

On 10 December, protected witness PRH 264 testified before the Trial Chamber. The witness was asked about specific phone numbers and persons that he identified earlier in his interview with investigators. The witness said that he has been working with a relative of late Prime Minister Hariri from 2002 until present. He assists him in different matters of his life and business, and he used to go out with him and a group of friends regularly. He was also asked about Mr Issa, who was part of this group of friends, and his relationship with him. He said that between 2004 and 2005, he was a close friend of Mr Issa and their friendship remained until 2010 after which they did not stay in contact anymore. The witness was also asked about the places they used to visit together in Lebanon.

Prosecution asked the witness about the phone numbers of Mr Issa saved on the witness’s phone as well as about certain phone calls and SMS messages exchanged between the two of them. The witness confirmed that he also worked with Mr Issa in a promotional activity in two events. He said that Mr Issa did not attend the events, but he sent someone to represent him from his jewelry shop.

The witness was further asked about the sort of topics he discussed with Mr Issa as a friend. He said that they spoke mainly about general topics and what happened on daily basis but never spoke about politics. He also said that he went around five times to Mr Issa’s apart-ment in Jounieh and that it had little furniture and was not well equipped. The witness was asked about Mr Issa’s appearance and behavior when they went out and was then shown a photo of someone who he identified

as resembling Mr Issa. He was also shown a photo-graph of an allegedly younger Mustafa Badreddine, whom he did not recognise.

On 14 December, Defence Counsel for Mr Badred-dine cross-examined witness PRH 264. The witness was questioned about his interview with the Prose-cution and his witness statements of June 2011 and January 2012. He was also asked about names in his phone directory and about Mr Issa. The witness said the last time he saw Mr Issa was on the street when he was consoling the witness for his father’s death in 2010. He was also asked about the way Mr Issa walks and if he wore eyeglasses. The witness explained that Mr Issa used to wear a support for his knee and that sometimes he saw him with glasses. He also added that the majority of the time he would wear a baseball cap.

He was further asked about his relationship with Mr Issa and about his jewelry stores. He said that Mr Issa already owned the stores when he met him. In addi-tion, the witness was questioned about a reservation he made for Mr Issa for New Year’s Eve on 31 December 2009 in Lebanon. The witness explained that he was not with Mr Issa and his friends, but only made the reservation. He was then questioned about SMS messages and phone calls exchanged between him and Mr Issa on 14 and 15 February 2005. The witness said that Mr Issa contacted him to check on him in light of the assassination of Prime Minister Hariri and that they discussed what happened during that day.

On 15 December, protected witness PRH 089 testi-fied before the Trial Chamber. During his examina-tion-in-chief, the witness said that he met Mr Issa at university in 2003, when they became friends. He said that he left university in mid-2004 to 2005, but he still used to see Mr Issa three to four times a week.

The witness was examined about phone numbers, one of which he said was the number of Mr Issa. He was also questioned about certain phone calls and SMS messages exchanged between them. PRH 089 was also asked about the areas he went to with Mr Issa, about his family, bodyguards and cars. He was further asked about the machine gun he used to see in Mr Issa’s car. The witness said that it was kept in a suitcase in the car’s front passenger seat on the floor. He also added that he visited Mr Issa’s apartment in Jounieh several times.

He was further asked about Mr Issa’s physical appear-ance. He said that the only distinctive feature was the injury he had in his right leg. He added that Mr Issa told him he was living with his family in the Emirates

Document provided by the Public Information and Communications Section of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon

4

Document provided by the Public Information and Communications Section of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon

5

and then he had a car accident that caused his leg injury. The witness was also shown a photo in court which he said looked like Mr Issa but he could not confirm it was him.

On 16 December, Ms Nicole Blanch, an associate analyst with the Prosecution, resumed her testimony of 19 November before the Trial Chamber. The witness spoke about the sequence of telephone calls on a specific date made and received by telephone of a numbers that the Prosecution attributes to Mr Issa.

Defence Counsel for Mr Badreddine cross-examined Ms Blanch. The witness was questioned about her witness statement. She was also questioned about her analysis of the content of SMS messages and phone calls exchanged between Mr Issa and one of his employees. She also spoke about two call sequence tables (CSTs), one which incorporated all the calls of all numbers attributed to Mr Issa and another one with the SMS messages for a telephone number attributed to him.

In the case against Akhbar Beirut S.A.L. and Mr. Ibrahim Mohamed Ali Al Amin - STL-14-06

On 11 December, a pre-trial conference was held in the case of STL-14-06. Prior to the conference, the Amicus Curiae Prosecutor (Amicus) had filed nine motions: A request for authorization to amend his witness list; a request for postponement of trial; two applications for protective measures; two addenda to the applications for protective measures; a request for judicial notice; a request for an addendum on an expert report; and a request for authorisation to amend the indictment.

During the pre-trial conference, Contempt Judge Nicola Lettieri heard the submissions from both parties on these motions. The Assigned Defence Counsel said that he seeks the dismissal of all the requests made by the Amicus and would not accept any postponement of the trial, in the interest of the Accused. He added that the Defence is ready to start the trial as per the earlier scheduling orders without any amendment and without the addition of any witnesses or documents. The Amicus responded by saying that the sought addi-tions do not alter the nature of the case, and that while the Amicus is ready for the trial, a postponement until the Appeals Panel in STL-14-05 rules on the appeal in that case would be in the interest of the Tribunal.

The Assigned Defence Counsel for Akhbar Beirut and Mr Al Amin also opposed any request to compel the

Accused to attend the proceedings, including an arrest warrant, and requested that the current trial be recog-nised as a trial in absentia in order to allow the Accused to benefit from the guarantees that flow from such proceedings.

In a written decision, Judge Lettieri permitted the Amicus Curiae’s requested amendments to his witness and exhibit lists. As a result, the Judge rescheduled the trial start date to 24 February 2016 in order to provide the Defence team with additional time to prepare in light of these amendments. The Judge also ordered that the Parties make their opening statements and the Amicus Curiae Prosecutor present his case in chief from 24 to 26 February and on 29 February and 1 March 2016, as needed. The Contempt Judge will determine the dates for the presentation of the Defence’s case, if any, as soon as practicable, in consultation with the parties. In separate decisions, the Judge rejected the Amicus Curiae’s requests for the postponement of trial pending the Appeals Panel decision in the STL-14-05 case as well as the request to amend the Order in Lieu of an Indictment.

The Contempt Judge’s reasoning for the decision to reschedule, along with two other decisions he made on 18 December 2015, can be found here.

News and Visits On 7 December, the French Minister of Justice, Christiane Taubira, paid a courtesy visit to the STL, as part of her one-day visit to the Netherlands that included discussions with Dutch officials. STL Pres-ident Judge Ivana Hrdličková, Prosecutor Norman

Farrell, the Head of the Defence Office François Roux, and Deputy Registrar Amelie Zinzius, welcomed the Minister and her delegation.

On 11 December, the Registrar of the STL, Daryl Mundis, concluded an official visit to Beirut, the last for the year 2015. Mr Mundis met with key interlocu-tors in Lebanon, as well as representatives of the diplo-matic community. He also met with STL staff in the Beirut Office to thank them for their constant efforts.

During the month of December, the STL hosted a group of 18 judges and legal officers from the Residual Special Court for Sierra Leone as well as a group of students from the University of Alcala, Spain.

You can book a visit for a group of at least 10 people by filling in the online booking form no later than one month prior to the proposed date of visit.

Current opportunities at the STLChief of Public Information and Communications Section – Registry/Public Information and Commu-nications Section – Grade: P-5; Deadline 14/02/2016. Among other responsibilities, the incumbent will manage the Public Information and Communications Section and will be responsible for developing and implementing communications strategies to effectively present the Tribunal externally.

Interpreter-Translator – Registry/Languages Services Section - Grade: P-3; Deadline 06/02/2016. The incumbent will provide consecutive and simultaneous interpretation, at the duty station or on mission, from English and Arabic into French.

Internships — the STL accepts internship applications for placement in the Chambers, Office of the Prose-cutor, Defence Office, and Registry on a rolling basis throughout the year.

Students from the University of Alcala, Spain, visiting the STLFrom L to R: Head of Defence Office, French Minister of Justice, STL President Judge, Deputy Registrar and Prosecutor.

www.stl-tsl.orgDokter van der Stamstraat 1, 2265 BC Leidschendam, Netherlands ✦ PO Box 115, 2260 AC Leidschendam, Netherlands.

For more information please contact the Public Information and Communications Section: stl-pressoffice@un.org Tel : +31 (0) 70 800 3560 / 3828 and +961 4 538 100 (Beirut)   www.twitter.com/stlebanon   www.facebook.com/stlebanon     www.youtube.com/stlebanon    www.flickr.com/stlebanon