Bernard Kouchner said the Netherlands-based tribunal investigating Rafik Hariri’s death is impartial and that the killers must be brought to justice.

“It is paramount for the equilibrium of Lebanon that there be no impunity for such crimes,” said Kouchner, who met with Lebanon’s president, prime minister and members of the Hezbollah militant group during his two-day trip.

Many observers fear violence could break out if the court indicts Hezbollah members. The militant group’s leader, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, says the court is biased and has been poisoned by “false witnesses” who misled the investigation.

Hezbollah said in a statement that it told Kouchner that “dangerous violations” have undermined the court’s professionalism and credibility from the start.

Kouchner said Hezbollah believes it “will be targeted more than others” by the tribunal.

“I understand their concerns ... I know they are certainly anxious about the consequences,” he said.

The UN tribunal has caused deep divisions within Lebanon’s already fractious government, which includes Hezbollah and its allies along with pro-Western blocs.

The current prime minister, Saad Hariri, is the son of the slain leader.

In recent months, the United States, France and other countries have appealed for calm and spoken out in support of the tribunal as part of a diplomatic effort to back the investigation.

The bombing that killed Rafik Hariri along Beirut’s Mediterranean waterfront on Feb. 14, 2005, was one of the most dramatic political assassinations the Mideast has seen. A billionaire businessman, Hariri was Lebanon’s most prominent politician after the 15-year civil war ended in 1990.