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Lebanon marks 4 years since port blast as war fears loom

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  • Lebanon marks 4 years since port blast as war fears loom
  • August 4, 2024
  • Article Body Text Beirut, Lebanon — <p>Lebanon on Sunday marks four years since a catastrophic explosion at Beirut's port killed more than 220 people, with fears of all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah hanging heavy over the grim commemoration.</p> <p>Several marches are set to converge on the port in the afternoon to remember the victims and demand justice.</p> <p>Nobody has been held responsible for the August 4, 2020, disaster -- one of history's biggest nonnuclear explosions -- which also injured at least 6,500 people and devastated swaths of the capital.</p> <p>Authorities said the explosion was triggered by a fire in a warehouse where a stockpile of ammonium nitrate fertilizer had been haphazardly stored for years.</p> <p>An investigation has stalled, mired in legal and political wrangling.</p> <p>&quot;The complete lack of accountability for such a manmade disaster is staggering,&quot; United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert said in a statement on Saturday.</p> <p>&quot;One would expect the concerned authorities to work tirelessly to lift all barriers ... but the opposite is happening,&quot; she said, calling for &quot;an impartial, thorough, and transparent investigation to deliver truth, justice, and accountability.&quot;</p> <p>In December 2020, lead investigator Fadi Sawan charged former Prime Minister Hassan Diab and three ex-ministers with negligence, but as political pressure mounted, he was removed from the case.</p> <p>His successor, Tarek Bitar, unsuccessfully asked lawmakers to lift parliamentary immunity for MPs who were formerly Cabinet ministers.</p> <p>In December 2021, Bitar suspended his probe after a barrage of lawsuits, while the powerful Hezbollah group has accused him of bias and demanded his dismissal.</p> <p>But in January last year, he resumed investigations, charging eight new suspects including high-level security officials and Lebanon's top prosecutor, who in turn charged Bitar with &quot;usurping power&quot; and ordered the release of detainees in the case.</p> <p>The process has since stalled again.</p> <p>A judicial official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that Bitar would &quot;resume his proceedings, starting next week&quot; and intends to finish &quot;the investigation and issue his indictment decision ... by the end of the year.&quot;</p> <p>Bitar will set dates for questioning defendants who have not yet appeared before him, according to the official.</p> <p>If the public prosecutor's office or other relevant judicial officials fail to cooperate, Bitar &quot;will issue arrest warrants in absentia&quot; for the defendants, the official added.</p> <p>Activists have called for a U.N. fact-finding mission into the blast, but Lebanese officials have repeatedly rejected the demand.</p> <p>Prospects of further disaster loom over this year's anniversary, with Hamas ally Hezbollah and the Israeli army trading cross-border fire since the Palestinian group's October 7 attack that triggered the Gaza war and fears that an all-out conflict could engulf Lebanon. </p>
  • Content Type Text
  • Language English
  • NewsML Media Topics Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
  • Subtitles / Dubbing Available No
  • Network VOA
  • Embargo Date August 4, 2024 03:09 EDT
  • Byline Agence France-Presse
  • Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English
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