A French judge is expected in Lebanon at the end of January as part of the investigations carried out in Paris on the subject of the devastating explosion in the port of Beirut which in particular caused French victims, a Lebanese judicial source told AFP on Wednesday January 11.
The Lebanese investigation into this huge explosion that ravaged entire neighborhoods of Beirut on August 4, 2020 has been suspended for more than a year due to political pressure. The explosion killed more than 200 people, including at least two French people, and nearly 6,500 injured, including some 93 French people.
French investigation opened in France
During a press conference on Wednesday, the Lebanese Minister of Justice, Henri Khourenri Khoury,y, confirmed that a French justice delegation would arrive in Beirut on January 23 as part of the investigation into this explosion. According to the judicial source, the investigating judge comes “request information about letters rogatory sent to Lebanon as part of the investigation opened in Franceand remained unanswered. “The Lebanese side will reply that they have no answers because the Lebanese investigation is suspendedin Lebanon, the source added.
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The blast was set off at a warehouse housing hundreds of tons of sloppily stored ammonium nitrate and was blamed by much of the population on ruling class corruption and negligence. The Lebanese authorities refused an international investigation, demanded in particular by the relatives of the victims and organizations for the defense of human rights.
Lebanese investigation suspended in Lebanon
The Lebanese investigation has been suspended since December 2021 due to political obstruction. The work of the lead investigator, Tarek Bitar, has been blocked by a series of lawsuits launched against him and by a campaign led by Hezbollah, the dominant force in Lebanon, which accuses the judge of bias.
This Tuesday, relatives of the victims, who regularly demonstrate for the culprits to be identified, stormed the courthouse in Beirut to express their anger and demand the resumption of the investigation.
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