Tuesday, January 18, 2011

BEIRUT: With the Special Tribunal for Lebanon issuing its indictments dossier to pre-trial judge Daniel Fransen Monday, here is a time line of major assassinations and assassinations attempts since 2005 that the tribunal may look into:

2005

n Former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri: The five-time Prime Minister and successful businessman was assassinated by a massive car bomb on Feb. 14. Twenty-two others were killed in the blast. Hariri’s killing sparked the “Cedar Revolution,” which forced Syria to withdraw its troops after a 19-year presence.

n Former Economy Minister Bassel Fleihan: A leading Future Movement figure and a senior Hariri aide, Fleihan died in April of injuries sustained in the blast that killed Hariri. He was elected to Parliament for the Protestant seat in 2000 and later appointed minister.

n Journalist Samir Kassir: The prominent An-Nahar newspaper columnist and fierce critic of the Syrian presence in Lebanon was killed by a bomb in his car on June 2. Kassir, a Christian Orthodox of mixed Syrian-Palestinian descent, was known for his left-wing activism and pro-democracy views.

n Ex-Lebanese Communist Party (L.C.P.) leader Georges Hawi: A leading figure in the Lebanese National Movement during the Civil War and active in the guerilla resistance against the Israeli invasion, Hawi only began criticizing the Syrian military presence post-2000 after splitting from the L.C.P. He was killed by a car bomb in June.

n Journalist and M.P. Gebran Tueni: An-Nahar editor and fervent critic of Syria’s influence in Lebanon from 2000, Tueni became a leading force behind the Cedar Revolution and was elected to a Christian seat in Parliament in May 2005 before being assassinated by a remote-controlled car bomb in December.

2006

n Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel: A Kataeb (Phalange) Party M.P. and son of former President Amine Gemayel was gunned down in his car in November.

2007

n Future Movement M.P. Walid Eido: Firm critic of Syria and of President Emile Lahoud, Eido was assassinated by a June car bomb that also killed eight others including his eldest son.

n Kataeb (Phalange) Party M.P. Antoine Ghanem: The Syria critic was assassinated by a car bomb in September.

n General Francois al-Hajj: A general who fought the Israeli occupation of south Lebanon, Syrian assault on Christian neighborhoods in east Beirut in 1988-89, and various Lebanese militias during the 1975-90 civil war, Hajj was tipped to succeed General Michel Sleiman as army commander, before being killed by a car bomb in December.

2008

n Internal Security Forces (I.S.F.) Captain Wissam Eid: The top Lebanese investigator into Hariri’s assassination and leading communications analyst with the police intelligence bureau was killed by a car bomb in January.

Attempted assassinations:

n M.P. Marwan Hamadeh: Hamadeh escaped an assassination attempt when a car bomb exploded near his car in October 2004 killing his driver and severely wounding him.

n Defense Minister Elias Murr: The Defense Minister and deputy Prime Minister was wounded in a bombing in Antelias on July 12, 2005.

n LBC news anchor, May Chidiac: A vocal critic of Syria’s presence in Lebanon, Chidiac was seriously wounded in a bombing of her vehicle in September 2005.