Berut: Former Lebanese internal minister on Thursday investigated 2020 before investigating a judge for the first time in court. Berut port explosionA judicial source told AFP.
On August 4, 2020, the horrific explosion destroyed a large part of one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history, killing more than 220 people and injured more than 6,500.
Judge Tarek Bitter resumed his investigation into the incident in January, as after being forced to suspend it in 2021 due to political pressure.
He was accused of prejudice, and in the investigation of several officials – including former internal minister Nohd Machanok, who suspects of “negligence and misconduct” – started a series of legal proceedings against him.
After Joseph Aun was elected President, Bitter began his investigation and reformist Nawaf Salaam appointed Prime Minister earlier this year, both promised to maintain judicial freedom.
The disastrous port explosion caught fire in a warehouse, where senior authorities were repeatedly unheard of ammonium nitrate fertilizer for years, despite repeated warnings to senior authorities.
The judicial source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that on Thursday, Machnok’s interrogation focused on a report received on April 5, 2014 – when he was still the internal minister – about the custody of a ship in the Lebanese water, whose crew requested permission to install the sail.
In Lebanese politics, the investigation of the explosion was stopped after a major force Hizbullah for a long time, but now weakened by his latest war with Israel, accused Bitter of BIS and demanded to be removed.
Two French investigative judges are expected at the end of the month to introduce the bitar with evidence collected by French authorities, as three French citizens were among the victims, a judicial source said earlier.
On 11 April, two former top security officers also appeared before Bitar for the first time.
