The investigation into the Beirut port explosion has taken a new turn, with the judge overseeing the probe charging a former prime minister and two other former ministers with homicide with probable intent.
The explosion in August 2020, which happened in a massive silo in the port of Beirut containing a large amount of the fertiliser ammonium nitrate which had been stored there since 2014, killed 218 people and devastated parts of the city. An investigation was quickly set up, but has been plagued with delays and difficulties.
The judge’s decision to lay fresh charges comes after the investigation had been stalled for over a year following a succession of lawsuits from politicians already indicted. But the presiding judge, Tarek Bitar, reopened the inquiry unexpectedly this week, defying the wishes of the public prosecutor.
