“ One witness of Syrian origin but resident in Lebanon, who claims to have worked for the Syrian intelligence services in Lebanon, has stated that approximately two weeks after the adoption of Security Council resolution 1559, senior Lebanese and Syrian officials decided to assassinate Rafik Hariri. He claimed that a senior Lebanese security official went several times to Syria to plan the crime, meeting once at the Meridian Hotel in Damascus and several times at the Presidential Place and the office of a senior Syrian security official. ”

“ All the key players amongst the competent Lebanese authorities have been interviewed as well as their experts involved in the initial measures of the investigation. The early investigation showed a pattern that no one claimed they had the slightest clue that something was going on around Mr. Hariri that could threaten his life. The efforts undertaken by the Commission during a limited period of time have come to a diametrically opposite conclusion. ”

“ Given the infiltration of Lebanese institutions and society by the Syrian and Lebanese intelligence services working in tandem, it would be difficult to envisage a scenario whereby such a complex assassination plot could have been carried out without their knowledge. ”

“ Praise be to God for the banner of Nasra and Jihad is victorious in Greater Syria, and with God’s blessings the agent of the infidels in Mecca and Medina, Rafik Hariri, has been meted out his due punishment through a suicide operation executed by the Mujahid Ahmad Abu Adass bearing the banner of Nasra and Jihad in Greater Syria on Monday, 14 February 2005, the 5th of Muhurram 1426 according to the Islamic Calendar, in Beirut. ”

“ There is probable cause to believe that the decision to assassinate former Prime Minister, Rafik Hariri, could not have been taken without the approval of top-ranked Syrian security official and could not have been further organized without the collusion of their counterparts in the Lebanese security services. ”

“ The Lebanese experts involved in the crime scene examination, representing a variety of different agencies, came up with different opinions on the findings and results of the examination. As a result, they were summoned to a meeting at the Military Court in the presence of the Prosecutor General (witness statement) . The meeting led to a request from the Lebanese authorities for foreign assistance in examining the crime scene, which was directed to the Government of Switzerland. A Swiss forensic expert team visited Lebanon in March 2005 and conducted a forensic investigation. ”

“ It is the Commission’s conclusion that the continuing investigation should be carried forward by the appropriate Lebanese judicial and security authorities, who have proved during the investigation that with international assistance and support, they can move ahead and at times take the lead in an effective and professional manner. At the same time, the Lebanese authorities should look into all the case’s ramifications including bank transactions. ”

“ In addition, while in charge of the Hariri investigation, he also had to discharge his normal functions. The case was contaminated with political issues and during demonstrations in Beirut on 14 March 2005, he heard people mentioning his name in a critical manner (witness statement) .
49. At the time he left the post of Investigative Judge, the only achievement in the investigation was the Mr. Abu Adass lead, despite attempts to focus on the modus operandi of the explosion and to get all experts involved to come up with one consensus opinion (witness statement) . ”

“ Building on the findings of the Commission and Lebanese investigations to date and on the basis of the material and documentary evidence collected, and the leads pursued until now, there is converging evidence pointing at both Lebanese and Syrian involvement in this terrorist act. It is a well known fact that Syrian Military Intelligence had a pervasive presence in Lebanon at the least until the withdrawal of the Syrian forces pursuant to resolution 1559. The former senior security officials of Lebanon were their appointees. ”

“ The Dutch forensic team was assisted by many people in carrying out the crime scene investigation, e.g. forensic police officers from ISF, a team of British divers, a French expert on explosives, a forensic scientist from Northern Ireland, a German electrical engineer specialized on jamming devices, a team of Japanese crime scene investigators, a German car expert, a Dutch car expert and a number of Lebanese specialists. ”

“ Several important people such as former presidents, prime ministers and deputies were permanently wiretapped. Although Mr. Hariri was no longer Prime Minister in early 2005, he was a very important political and economic figure in Lebanon and the Middle East. Therefore he was under permanent wiretapping. The technical department monitored and recorded conversations. Staff from the Lebanese Sûreté Générale supported Tufayli’s army unit. The protocols were forwarded on a daily basis to General Raymond Azar and to the head of the army, General Michel Suleyman. ”

“ Different possibilities include a suicide bomber, a wireless explosion using different frequencies from those of the jamming devices or using the frequencies of the jamming devices , a wireless explosion using the jamming devices themselves, a wireless explosion using a satellite phone from Thuraya, the only telephone company working on Lebanese territory with satellite links, a wired explosion using a TNT cable, or a wired explosion using another kind of installed cable such as a telephone line as a connecting wire. ”

“ Abu Adass, there is little else supporting the idea that he perpetrated this assassination through a suicide bomb. There is no evidence, other than the claim on the video itself, of the existence of a group called the Nasra and Jihad Group Of Greater Syria. There is no information about such a group in any open sources prior to 14 February 2005, for example, and neither the Lebanese authorities nor Mr. Abu Adass’s friends and acquaintances appear to have even heard of the group prior to the day of the assassination. ”

“ For this reason, the Commission took great care to ensure that witness interviews were conducted in a confidential manner. Because the Commission credits the concern that these individuals have for their safety, this report will not reveal the identity of those interviewed. Second, as is true in any investigation, witnesses often provide information beyond the scope of the investigation being conducted. The Commission has and will continue to forward to Lebanese authorities all information related to any criminal matter beyond the scope of the Commission’s investigation. ”

“ The Swiss expert team’s findings and conclusions can be fully supported. Due to the distribution of the so far located parts of a Mitsubishi Canter lorry, it can be assumed that that vehicle played a significant part in the course of action and was possibly used as carrier of the bomb.
After the assessment of all facts and estimations an aboveground explosion is the most feasible possibility. If we assume such an explosion, the amount of explosive must have been around 1,000 kg. Highly aggressive explosive was used. The result of an A-sample from the crater wall shows that TNT was used. ”

“ The negligence of the Lebanese authorities to undertake proper investigative measures and a full-scale professional crime scene examination immediately after the blast has made it difficult to resolve key questions regarding the execution of the bombing, such as the type of explosive used, or may have resulted in the potential loss of important evidence, such as useful CCTV videos. ”

“ The Lebanese authorities reported and requested assistance from Interpol to locate and interview the identified suspects in accordance with established protocol. The protocol followed by Interpol was correct. The Australian authorities were contacted via Interpol to follow up on this matter. The Australian authorities carried out a thorough investigation into the matter and presented a report on their findings to the Lebanese authorities. The Lebanese authorities properly suspended this present line of inquiry based on the report presented by the Australian authorities. ”

“ SEPTEMBER 2005 2004 26 August 2004, Rafik Hariri meets in Damascus with Syrian President Bashar Assad to discuss the extension of the term of President Lahoud. 2 September 2004, the United Nations Security Council adopts resolution 1559 concerning the situation in the Middle East, calling for the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Lebanon. 3 September 2004, the Rafik Hariri bloc approves the extension law for President Lahoud. 3 September 2004, the Lebanese parliament adopts the extension law for President Lahoud and forwards it to the Lebanese government for execution. ”

“ Much needs to be done to overcome sectarian divisions, disentangle security from politics, and restructure the security apparatus to avoid parallel lines of reporting and duplication and to enhance accountability.
209. It is the Commission’s conclusion that, after having interviewed witnesses and suspects in the Syrian Arab Republic and establishing that many leads point directly towards Syrian security officials as being involved with the assassination, it is incumbent upon Syria to clarify a considerable part of the unresolved questions. ”

“ The six pre-paid cards originated, along with four others, from the Powergroup Company, Beirut, a store owned by a reportedly active member of Al-Ahbash with close ties to Sheikh Ahmad Abdel-Al. According to company records, the lines were delivered to the store’s Tripoli branch. One of the employees of that Tripoli store reported that on the 30 December 2004, he received a telephone call from Raed Fakhreddin, the owner of another cell shop in Tripoli and the nephew of Tarek Ismat Fakhreddin, a prominent businessman and consultant to former Lebanese prime minister Omar Karame. ”

“ It is of the utmost importance to continue to pursue the trail both within and outside Lebanon. The Commission’s work is only part of a broader process. Even as this report is being written a significant arrest was made just a few days ago; witness interviews are continuing and complex evidence continues to be reviewed. ”

“ Mr. Fakhreddin, a prominent businessman, is a close associate of then-Prime Minister Omar Karame. Tarek Fakhreddin also made calls hours after the blast to General Hamdan, General Azar, General Hajj and the Syrian intelligence officer Jamea Jamea. In addition, he had telephone contact with his nephew Raed Fakhreddin at 1337 hrs on the 14 February 2005. Raed Fakhreddin is heavily suspected to have bought the prepaid cards which were used to organize the assassination. ”

“ Regarding the physical evidence presented in this report and the fact small human remains of an unidentified person have been found and no large body parts such as legs, feet or lower arms, the most likely scenario for the activation of the IED is a suicide bomber. Another only slightly less likely possibility is that of a remotely-controlled device. However, no residues of such a device have been recovered from the crime scene.
The British Forensic Team 157. On 5 September 2005, the British Forensic Team submitted their report to the Commission. The British team was composed of seven experts. ”

“ On 30 August 2005, the Lebanese authorities arrested and detained four high-level officials of the Lebanese security and intelligence apparatus, pursuant to arrest warrants issued by the Lebanese Prosecutor General based on recommendations from UNIIIC that there was probable cause to arrest and detain them for conspiracy to commit murder in connection with the assassination of Rafik Hariri. The individuals arrested were General Jameel Al-Sayyed, former director general the Sûreté Générale ; General Ali Al-Hajj, former head of the ISF; General Raymond Azar, former head of military intelligence ”

“ Jumblat called me and told me that the Syrian Intelligence had cancelled his appointment.
In the evening, Mr. Jumblat and myself went to visit Mr. Hariri. He said that R. Ghazali insisted that as long as his answer was not positive, he would not confirm his appointment either. He was asked to go to Damascus, stay in his house (...) until further notice. The following day, he was called in for a short meeting. ”

“ General Hamdan talked very negatively about Mr. Hariri accusing him of being pro-Israeli. General Hamdan ended the conversation by stating: “We are going to send him on a trip, bye, bye Hariri”. After the assassination, the witness was strongly reminded not to discuss this conversation with anyone.
104. Another “witness” who later became a suspect, Zuhir Ibn Mohamed Said Saddik, has given detailed information to the Commission about the crime, in particular insofar as the planning phase is concerned. Paragraphs 105 to 110 set out the main points of Mr. Saddik’s statement. ”

“ A specialized software was used to analyze and investigate numerous telephone calls by those figures identified as the most important to the investigation, permitting UNIIIC to achieve an optimal result with limited staff members and a short timeframe. The assistance of the Lebanese telephone companies and authorities was essential to making the analysis effective. For example, the Lebanese telecommunications companies MTC Touch and Alpha responded quickly to requests for cellphone subscriber information and toll records. ”