Former Lebanese minister called to testify in 2020 Beirut blast investigation

A former Lebanese interior minister appeared in court on Thursday for the first time before a judge investigating the 2020 Beirut port explosion, according to a judicial source who spoke to AFP.

The devastating blast on August 4, 2020, one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history, destroyed large parts of Beirut, killing over 220 people and injuring more than 6,500.

Judge Tarek Bitar resumed his investigation into the incident in January, after a suspension in 2021 due to political pressure. He had been accused of bias, and several officials named in the investigation, including former interior minister Nohad Machnouk, who is suspected of "negligence and misconduct," filed legal challenges against him.

Bitar resumed his inquiry after the election of Joseph Aoun as president and the appointment of reformist Nawaf Salam as prime minister earlier this year. Both have pledged to uphold judicial independence.

The massive explosion was caused by a fire in a warehouse where tons of ammonium nitrate fertilizer had been stored unsafely for years after arriving by ship, despite repeated warnings to senior officials.

The judicial source, who requested anonymity, said the questioning of Machnouk on Thursday focused on a report he received on April 5, 2014, when he was still interior minister. The report was about the detention of a ship in Lebanese waters, with the crew requesting permission to set sail.

The investigation was halted after Hezbollah, a dominant force in Lebanese politics but weakened by its recent war with 'Israel', accused Bitar of bias and demanded his removal.

Two French investigative judges are expected to arrive in Beirut at the end of the month to present evidence gathered by French authorities. Three French nationals were among the victims, according to a previous judicial source.

On April 11, two former top security officials also appeared before Bitar for the first time.