Port blast indictment may be issued in two months

Beirut port blast investigator Judge Tarek Bitar might issue his indictment in the case in two months, ad-Diyar newspaper reported on Tuesday.

“Bitar is waiting for answers to judicial writs that he had sent abroad through which he requested specific information related to the case,” the daily said.

“He will announce the indictment afterwards and will not be impeded by the new calls for removing him,” ad-Diyar added.

Authorities in Lebanon say the August 4, 2020 explosion was triggered by a fire in a warehouse where tons of ammonium nitrate fertilizer had been stored haphazardly for years, despite repeated warnings to senior officials.

The blast was one of the world's largest non-nuclear explosions, destroying swathes of the Lebanese capital, killing more than 220 people and injuring more than 6,500.

Bitar resumed his investigation last year as Lebanon's balance of power shifted following a war between Israel and Hezbollah that weakened the militant group, which had spearheaded a campaign against him.

President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, who both took office last year, have vowed to uphold the independence of the judiciary in a country plagued by official impunity.

Officials named in the port explosion investigation had filed a flurry of lawsuits seeking to hamper its progress.