BEIRUT: Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s assassins purchased cellphone SIM cards using the identities of unsuspecting Tripoli citizens who had visited phone shops in early 2005, according to the narrative advanced by the prosecution of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon Wednesday.
The prosecution read witness statements from a number of Tripolitans whose names were registered to phone numbers which the prosecution claims were used by the assassins. While all the witnesses said they had purchased SIM cards in early 2005, they denied knowledge of the phone numbers registered in their names which were connected to the Hariri assassins.
Several witnesses noted spelling errors or factual flaws on the registration papers for the phone lines tied to the Hariri assassination. Khaled Yakan stated that he had purchased a line in early 2005 and had given the shopkeeper his ID to photocopy. He was shocked when he later discovered a line allegedly used by Hariri’s assassins was registered to him. When shown the line’s registration papers, Yakan found that his name was misspelled and he did not recognize the handwriting or the signature on the form. He said he did not sign any document in the shop.
This was not the first time that the tribunal has heard statements from witnesses whose identities had been falsely used to purchase SIM cards involved in the assassination plot. In January the STL heard from several other witnesses whose names had been tied to lines which the prosecution claims were used for surveillance and carrying out the attack on Hariri. All of the witnesses recounted similar stories to those heard in court Wednesday.
Later Tuesday, Judge David Re listened to arguments by the prosecution who stated their wish to call two expert witnesses to the stand simultaneously. The experts, both Argentine engineers, co-authored a report about the massive explosion which killed Hariri and 21 others on Feb, 14, 2005.
The defense vehemently objected to the simultaneous testimony, listing a host of logistical and juridical issues with the proposal.
Lawyers for the five Hezbollah members suspected of plotting the attack called the proposal for simultaneous testimony “an unusual departure from the procedures” for which there was no precedent in criminal proceedings at the international level.
The testimony is particularly contentious because the experts found that the explosion must have taken place above ground. The defense has repeatedly suggested that the blast might have been detonated below ground, casting doubt on the prosecution’s entire account of the crime.
Judge Re did not issue a decision regarding the concurrent testimony of the Argentine experts.
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