Four Hizbullah members go on trial in absentia this week at the U.N.-backed tribunal for the 2005 killing of former Premier Rafik Hariri in a case increasingly overshadowed by sectarian bloodshed at home.

Nine years after a massive Beirut car bombing killed Hariri, leading to the exit of Syrian troops from Lebanon, and three years into Syria's own bloody civil war, prosecutors are finally to open their case on Thursday in a suburb of The Hague.

British Ambassador to Lebanon Tom Fletcher on Sunday held talks with former Prime Minister Saad Hariri in Paris, the embassy announced.

“Fletcher passed on Britain's condolences following the assassination of (ex-minister) Mohammed Shatah, a huge loss to Lebanon,” said the embassy in a statement.

Phalange Party leader Amin Gemayel on Sunday noted that the verdicts that will be issued by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon against the killers of former premier Rafik Hariri and his companions would “enhance stability” in Lebanon.

“Justice is the normal gate to stability, peace, national unity and partnership,” Gemayel said during a meeting with a delegation from the Beirut and Tripoli bar associations.

Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced on Saturday that he will attend the opening session of the trial of the alleged killers of his father, late premier Rafik Hariri, on January 16 in The Hague.

“Hariri will head a March 14 delegation to attend the opening session of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon,” radio Voice of Lebanon (93.3) reported on Saturday afternoon.

The Higher Islamic Council called on Saturday for the formation of an all-embracing cabinet away from conditions and the counter-conditions imposed by the rival parties.

The council, headed by Grand Mufti Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Qabbani, expressed relief over the exerted efforts by the political foes to reach an acceptable cabinet lineup.

Special Tribunal for Lebanon Prosecutor Norman Farrell has hinted that new sorts of evidence will appear during the trial of four Hizbullah members in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's assassination case next week.

In an interview with An Nahar daily published on Saturday, Farrell said the details of the evidence will be made public during the opening of the trial next Thursday.

U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon has said the trial of the suspects in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's assassination next week was an important step to achieve justice as he warned that the absence of a new government in Lebanon could lead to a “political vacuum.”

In remarks to reporters in New York, Ban said Thursday that he was looking forward for the start of the trial against four Hizbullah members in absentia at the seat of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon in The Hague.

A committee made up of March 14 officials has been holding discussions to unify the proposals on the coalition's new strategy, the Kuwaiti al-Anbaa newspaper reported Tuesday.

The daily quoted informed sources as saying that the committee's initial talks are focusing on merging the proposals of the alliance’s different parties on the strategy pending an agreement over their joint vision on the situation in the country, including Hizbullah's assistance to keep its fighters in Syria.

The Trial Chamber of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon will hold a third Pre-Trial Conference on Thursday 9 January in preparation for the start of the trial in the Ayyash et al. Case, announced the STL in a statement on Monday.

The Pre-Trial Conference, which will be public, will begin at 10:30 AM (Central European Time).

The United States has welcomed Lebanon’s decision to fulfill its 2013 funding obligations to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, lauding caretaker Premier Najib Miqati on his strong leadership.

“We recognize and commend Prime Minister Miqati’s strong leadership in ensuring that the government met this important commitment,” State Department Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf said in a statement on Monday.