The conviction of a member of Hezbollah of conspiring to kill former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri in a 2005 bombing is a step towards justice, a British minister said on Tuesday.

"As @STLebanon (Special Tribunal for Lebanon) delivers its judgement, our thoughts are with those affected by the 2005 attack in Beirut, another painful event in Lebanon's history," James Cleverly, a minister in the foreign office, said on Twitter.

"Today's verdict is a step towards justice. Those who commit such atrocities must be held to account."