UN chief concerned with status of Hariri case

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed concern that Lebanon has not given final approval to an international tribunal to prosecute the suspected killers of its former prime minister, Rafik Hariri. The new UN chief, who took over from Kofi Annan on Jan. 1, said he planned to discuss the holdup with Lebanese leaders at an international donors conference in Paris on Jan. 25 to raise money for reconstruction in Lebanon following last summer's 34-day war between Israel and Hizbullah guerrillas. He told reporters Wednesday after returning from a two-day trip to Washington that he discussed the situation in Lebanon with US President George W. Bush.