Defining terrorism at the Special Tribunal for Lebanon

Abstract

On 16 February 2011, the Appeals Chamber of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) issued an interlocutory decision regarding the legal definition of terrorism.This decision was in response to a Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) list of questions requesting, inter alia, an elaboration of the elements of this crime.In exploring this matter, the Appeals Chamber defined the subjective (mens rea) and objective elements (actus reus) of terrorism by referring to domestic Lebanese law and international law. It thereby set out the applicable law for the court. The consequence of this decision however is not limited to the law of STL but may be seen as having far-reaching consequences for the conception of terrorism under both international law and International Criminal Law (ICL). Given the significance of the Appeals Chamber judgment, this paper will scrutinise three areas of concern regarding its propriety.