U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan spoke with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Syrian President Basher Al-Assad over the weekend about the recent political developments in Lebanon, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Monday. Annan discussed the need for countries in the region in particular and the international community as a whole to promote the stability and the unity of Lebanon, Dujarric told reporters. He urged them to counsel the parties concerned to exercise patience and resolve their differences through dialogue. Meanwhile, the U.N. Security Council held closed consultations Monday and was briefed by top U.N. legal official Nicolas Michel, who presented a report on the establishment of a tribunal of an international character to try suspects in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri.
