In this file photo taken on February 16, 2005, mourners gather on the grave of slain former prime minister Rafiq Hariri in downtown Beirut. (RAMZI HAIDAR / AFP)
Judges at the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon are set to rule in the case of four men charged
with the killing of former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri and 21 others in a 2005 bombing.
Hariri's assassination plunged Lebanon into what was then its worst crisis since the 1975-90 civil war, leading to the withdrawal of Syrian forces and setting the stage for years of confrontation between rival political forces.
The Hezbollah terror group has denied any involvement in the 2005 bombing.
The case has been overshadowed by the even bigger Beirut blast this month - the largest in Lebanon's history - that killed 178 people and drew outraged demands for accountability.
The judgment had initially been expected earlier this month, but was delayed after the port explosion.
The investigation and trial in absentia of the four Hezbollah members has taken 15 years and cost roughly $1 billion. It could result in a guilty verdict and later sentencing of up to life imprisonment, or acquittal.
The hybrid court, with Lebanese criminal law and a mix of international and Lebanese judges, could serve as a model if Beirut decides to prosecute this month's explosion.
Bangladesh Nationalist Party acting Chairman Tarique Rahman returned from nearly 17 years in exile on Thursday, a homecoming the party hopes will energise supporters with Rahman poised to be the top contender for prime minister in February.
At least 5 were killed and 35 others injured when a bomber detonated an explosive inside a mosque in Maiduguri, the capital of Nigeria's Borno state, during evening prayers, police said.
A helicopter has crashed on Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro, killing five people, the civil aviation authority said on Thursday, while local media reported that the aircraft was on a medical rescue mission.
Fourteen countries including Britain, Canada, and Germany have condemned the Israeli security cabinet's approval of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, saying they violated international law and risked fuelling instability.