LEIDSCHENDAM, Netherlands, Sept. 13 (UPI) -- Forty members of a defense council for a U.N.-backed probe into the slaying of a Lebanese prime minister started their training program, a tribunal said.
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon announced that 40 people took part in its first training program for its list of counsel.
The tribunal is tasked with examining the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Hariri, along with dozens of others, was killed in a massive bombing in downtown Beirut.
Damascus and members of the Shiite militia Hezbollah are believed to have played a role in the assassination. Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah during an August news conference said he had evidence to suggest Israel played a role in the plot to kill Hariri.
Daniel Bellemare, the chief prosecutor at the STL, said he wasn't releasing an indictment in the case until he had all of the evidence.
The tribunal in announcing the training said many of the procedures focused on hypothetical situations.
"All topics were approached from a theoretical and a practical perspective, which allowed counsel to take an active role in the working sessions," the tribunal said.
A second training session is scheduled in October.
