Beirut blast probe to resume as court rejects challenges

Lebanon’s National News Agency says the country’s appeals court has rejected lawsuits filed against the lead investigator of the Beirut port explosion

BEIRUT -- Lebanon's appeals court on Monday rejected lawsuits filed against the lead investigator of the Beirut port explosion in a decision that allows him to resume his work, the country's National News agency said.

Monday’s ruling came a week after three former Cabinet ministers, who are also defendants in the investigation, accused the judge of bias and filed lawsuits demanding he be dismissed.

The challenge automatically suspended the probe until the decision was reached. The appeals court rejected the request to remove Judge Tarek Bitar, saying doing so is not its jurisdiction. It fined each of the three former ministers 800,000 Lebanese pounds ($47 at the black market rate, and about $530 at the official rate.)

The lawsuit was part of a growing campaign by Lebanon’s political class against the investigation into the devastating port explosion of Aug. 4, 2020. The blast heavily destroyed parts of Beirut, killed over 200 people and wounded over 6,000.