Lebanese PM wants tribunal to stop

BEIRUT, Lebanon, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri plans to ask the United Nations to end the international tribunal investigating his father's assassination, a report says.

The pro-Syrian Lebanese newspaper a-Diyar said Hariri intends to ask for an end to the international inquiry into in "the interests of the country," Haaretz reported Wednesday.

The Lebanese newspaper quoted Hariri as saying he intends to support Hezbollah if it is found guilty by the tribunal.

"I have already sacrificed a lot, and I cannot sacrifice more," he was quoted as saying.

Hariri's statements signify the Lebanese government's decision to stop funding the international tribunal to calm tensions between the government and Hezbollah, Haaretz said.

Rafik Hariri was killed in a downtown Beirut truck bombing in 2005.

The tribunal was established to investigate his death and track down those responsible. It is expected to announce indictments in the coming weeks.

In recent months foreign media have reported the tribunal has evidence Hezbollah, which has the support of Syria and Iran, was responsible for the assassination. Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah rejected the reports and accused the tribunal of bias.