BEIRUT: U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced Wednesday that Norman Farrell will be the Special Tribunal for Lebanon prosecutor.
 
Farrell takes over the position from Daniel Bellemare, who had served as prosecutor since 2009 and announced last year that, for health reasons, he would resign at end of February.
 
Farrell is a Canadian jurist with extensive experience in international law, currently serving as deputy prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. The ICTY’s prosecutor is Serge Brammertz, who led the U.N. International Independent Investigation Commission – the STL’s predecessor – from 2006 to 007.
 
As STL prosecutor, Farrell will take on the case against the four members of Hezbollah who were indicted in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Proceedings in absentia against the accused are expected to get under way this year.
 
He will also be responsible for the ongoing investigation and any further indictments in the Hariri case or connecting cases.
 
The secretary-general also announced the appointment of Ugandan Judge Daniel David Ntanda Nsereko to take the late Antonio Cassese’s seat in the court’s Appeals Chamber. Following Cassese’s resignation, Judge David Baragwanath was elected as STL president, but the Appeals Chamber, normally comprised of three international and two Lebanese judges, remained one judge short.
 
Following the United Nations’ announcement, STL spokesperson Marten Youssef said the court welcomed the appointments.
 
“Their respective roles are vital to the tribunal as we continue with our mandate,” Youssef said.