The news conference by Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah was certainly a skillful portrayal of a truth known by everyone, namely that Israel has intentions of committing sabotage actions and destabilizing Lebanon, and that it does not support the country's economic revival. Lebanon's modern history, since the civil war, has proven the existence of a situation that every honest and objective citizen acknowledges. However, the material presented by the secretary general of Hezbollah, particularly the photos taken from Israeli aircraft, do not constitute decisive evidence. Israel can certainly take such photos and follow the movements of Lebanese officials and leaders; however, the news conference was not decisive and convincing and did not have tangible evidence. Today, with advanced IT capabilities, it is easy to create visual documents and fashion them at will. Becoming convinced by such visual materials reminds us of Sherlock Holmes, the British detective. Relying on such documentation matches the complaint by Hezbollah's secretary general about the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, namely relying on false witnesses. However, regardless of the fact that the international investigation into the Rafiq Hariri assassination, since Serge Brammertz and after him Daniel Bellemare, has abandoned the evidence of the false witnesses, and no longer relies on it. This led to the release of four senior security and military officers. The international investigator and public prosecutor, Bellemare, is a judicial official with no connection to politics, and no one can influence him, even if they wanted to. Bellemare asked to investigate matters with a number of countries, including Israel. The notion that the STL has not conducted investigations with all concerned countries is not accurate. Since the beginning, the STL has requested cooperation with a number of countries. The fact that the talk and the rumors are focusing on the international investigation and Bellemare's work also reminds us of Sherlock Holmes. The news conference completely ignored the political conditions that preceded the assassination of Hariri and the extension of then-President Emile Lahoud's mandate, and the repercussions, and the local and regional political climate that prevailed as a result. It is as if these conditions had no impact, and they were completely absent from the secretary general's investigation. The issue was absent from the news conference, even though it has become part of Lebanon's history, as acknowledged by Hezbollah's allies today, and it appeared in the statements by General Michel Aoun, when he was in Paris. This was the reality of the Lebanese domestic and regional situations during the period that preceded the assassination of Hariri and the other martyrs who fell after him. Nasrallah told the tale, citing Syrian leaders, that an Arab leader tried to convince the Syrians to receive Lebanon in exchange for crushing Hezbollah's forces in the South. This reminds us of what the Israelis continually say to western and American leaders, namely that Israel prefers that Lebanon remain under Syrian control, because only Syria can control Hezbollah. Ever since the civil war and the expulsion of Yasser Arafat from Lebanon, Israel has sought Syrian domination over Lebanon, since it believes the Lebanese political system to be weak, and that only Syria can rein in Hezbollah. The documented presentation by Nasrallah at the news conference, and everything he said about Lebanese agents for Israel, will be taken into consideration by the international investigator. Bellemare is not finished with his investigation and has yet to issue an indictment. Everything that Nasrallah said was useful in the framework of Bellemare's investigation, which is studying all possibilities and documents; however, it is searching for tangible and precise evidence, in purely legal terms. What Nasrallah put forward will certainly be studied by the international investigation, which is working seriously and objectively. Doubting Bellemare's work is a negative act. Trying to convince the states that supervised the establishment of the STL that it would be better to delay the indictment, because it will lead to a civil war in Lebanon, will not succeed, because Bellemare is completely independent and the STL, like similar trials for Rwanda and Kosovo, cannot be eliminated.
