November 1, 2009 - Naharnet - Hariri Assassination Court Appoints Lebanese Judge

A special court set up to try the suspected killers of Lebanese ex-prime minister Rafiq Hariri on Sunday named a prominent Lebanese judge as its first deputy-prosecutor. Joyce Tabet, described by the court as having led "a long and distinguished career", took up the position in the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. She "has assumed her functions as deputy-prosecutor of the tribunal effective November 1, 2009," the court said in a statement. The judge will provide assistance to the tribunal's prosecutor Daniel Bellemare, who is Canadian, added the statement. She is the first person to hold this post since the tribunal was set up by a U.N. resolution in 2007, her spokeswoman Radhia Achouri told AFP. Tabet "has a long and distinguished career in the Lebanese justice system where she served under different and various capacities since 1979," the court said.Tabet will work in the court's office in Beirut. The tribunal was set up to investigate the assassination of Hariri, killed in a massive bomb blast on the Beirut seafront in February 2005. Hariri's murder was widely blamed on Syria but Damascus has denied any involvement. A U.N. commission has found evidence that Syrian and Lebanese intelligence services were linked to the killing.