The Special Tribunal for Lebanon confirmed on Monday that it has received Lebanon’s share of the 2013 budget from the Lebanese government.

“The full sum of 29,386,609 euros, amounting to 49 percent of the tribunal's budget, was transferred to the tribunal's bank account this morning by the Lebanese government,” it announced in a statement.

The United States on Friday deplored the assassination of former minister Mohammed Shatah as an “abhorrent terrorist attack,” urging the Lebanese to respect the Taif and Baabda agreements and reiterating its support for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

“On behalf of President (Barack) Obama and the United States, I condemn in the strongest possible terms today's abhorrent terrorist attack and assassination of former Lebanese Cabinet Minister Mohammed Shatah in Beirut,” U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement.

The Finance Ministry announced on Friday that Lebanon completed its share of the budget of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

Lebanon transferred 29 million euros that constitute its share of the tribunal funding.

The March 14 forces condemned on Friday the assassination of former Finance Minister Mohammed Shatah, saying that his murderer is “known to all Lebanese.”

Head of the Mustaqbal bloc MP Fouad Saniora said: “We demand that his assassination be referred to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.”

Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri condemned on Friday the assassination of his adviser Mohammed Shatah, saying that Lebanon lost moderate figure who believed in peace and an independent Lebanon.

He said in a statement: “Shatah's murderers are the same ones who assassinated former Premier Rafik Hariri.”

Francois Roux, head of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon's Defense Office, has appointed Mohamed Aouini as "lead counsel to defend the rights and interests of the accused Hassan Habib Merhi," the court announced on Monday.

"The Head of Defense Office was seized of a letter from the Pre-Trial Judge, dated 20 December 2013, requesting him to assign counsel to the Accused Hassan Habib Merhi, following the decision of the Trial Chamber of the same day which decided to initiate proceedings in absentia,” the STL said in a statement.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati denied on Sunday that his office had referred to the audit bureau a decree on the payment of Lebanon's share to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, drawing accusations and counter accusations between him and the finance ministry.

In a statement issued by his press office on Sunday morning, Miqati said the premiership had referred the decree to the finance ministry to ask for the transfer of Lebanon's share to the tribunal. But a ministry official referred it instead to the audit bureau.

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon said Friday that its Trial Chamber has decided to try the accused Hassan Habib Merhi in his absence.

“In issuing this decision on trial in absentia, the judges relied on reports from the Lebanese authorities detailing their efforts to apprehend the Accused and to inform him of the charges against him. They also relied on efforts by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon to publicize the indictment against Mr. Merhi and on its widespread coverage in the Lebanese media,” said a statement issued by STL's press office.

The office of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon Prosecutor has stressed that the circumstantial evidence against four Hizbullah members in the assassination case of ex-PM Rafik Hariri was sufficient to start the trial.

An Nahar daily published on Thursday quoted officials from the office as saying that the evidence was “enough” to open the trial on January 16 in the suicide bombing that killed Hariri and 22 others on the Beirut seafront on Feb. 2005.

The Defense Office of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon is set to include allegations by Bo Astrom to highlight the “flaws in the international investigation.”

An Nahar newspaper reported on Monday that the Astom's claims will be a rich material for the defense office, which will focus on the flaws of the investigation and to thwart off the theories adopted by Prosecutor Norman Farrell.