The spat over the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon is coming to a head, putting Najib Mikati in an unenviable position, Lucy Fielder reports from Beirut A row over the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) escalated this week, after leading members of Najib Mikati's cabinet spoke out against Beirut continuing to finance the controversial court, an international commitment the prime minister has promised to uphold. Mikati is under pressure from all sides, and some analysts now speak of his imminent resignation. Mikati's government is composed of an alliance led by Hizbullah, four of whose members have been indicted by the tribunal for involvement in the assassination of former premier Rafik Al-Hariri in 2005. The armed Shia party denies involvement and does not recognise the legitimacy of the court. Releasing the funding would, the argument goes, bestow legitimacy on a court that Hizbullah says is an Israeli and US-backed tool to be used against it. Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah has vowed never to hand the wanted men over. Lebanon, which approved the court under the government of Fouad Al-Siniora, is obliged under a UN resolution to stump up 49 per cent of the Hague-based court's running costs, and a draft budget issued last week factored in the funding. In a speech to the UN General Assembly last month, Mikati promised to uphold Lebanon's international commitments, including those relating to the tribunal. President Michel Suleiman has also said Lebanon would pay this year's instalment, which amounts to around $32 million. The cabinet was supposed to approve the draft budget this week, bringing the looming funding crisis to a head. This week, positions hardened in opposition to the funding. Leading the charge in typically strident manner was Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun, Hizbullah's key Christian ally. Aoun accused Mikati and Finance Minister Mohamed Safadi of breaking the law by agreeing to pay Lebanon's share, since the agreement Siniora's government made with the United Nations to establish the court did not pass through parliament, which Hizbullah and other critics at the time argued was unconstitutional. The Shia Amal Party of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, another part of the "8 March" alliance, also came out strongly against the funding. While it seems unlikely that Hizbullah would agree to fund the court set to try its members, some analysts had expected it to let it pass, rather than seek a confrontation, since the court will operate anyway, with other countries picking up the slack. Behind the scenes negotiations are underway to end the standoff. One suggestion has been for the funding to be approved by executive decree, bypassing the cabinet. But that would likely escalate tensions. Berri has suggested referring the budget discussion to parliament, in which 8 March has a majority. Mikati is widely seen as a centrist who has maintained good links with both Syria and Saudi Arabia, which backs Saad Hariri, his predecessor and rival for standing among the Sunni community. This despite the fact that his cabinet is dominated by the "8 March" alliance of Hizbullah, Amal, Aoun and several smaller parties, and was formed after Hizbullah brought down Hariri's "national unity" cabinet in January in a row over the court. Mikati risks alienating his Sunni community if he stands against the tribunal. Rifts are also opening up over his attempt to steer a neutral path concerning the uprising in neighbouring Syria. Lebanon's abstention from a vote condemning Syria for its violent crackdown on the uprising drew bitter criticism of the government, although many analysts believe that Lebanon could not have voted against Syria regardless of the government in place. Syria wields wide influence in its tiny, unstable neighbour, and many Lebanese fear it could stir instability in Lebanon to send a warning to the international community, or to lash out if targeted by global action. If the government fails to back the tribunal, analysts say international loans to shore up the debt-ridden and donor-dependent Lebanese economy could dry up. Other possible sanctions include US moves against Lebanese banks. In an editorial in the pro-government newspaper Al-Akhbar, Fidaa Itani sounded the death-knell for UN Security Council Resolution 1757, which established the court. Not only did he little expect Hizbullah, Amal and Aoun to budge on the funding issue, but he also expected the decisive political battle to occur in March, when the cabinet is supposed to renew the court's mandate.
