These are the first indictments of politicians. Four months after the tragedy, the Lebanese judge in charge of the investigation into the devastating explosion at the port of Beirut indicted, Thursday, December 10, the resigning Prime Minister Hassan Diab and three former ministers of negligence. This is the first time that a sitting prime minister has been indicted in connection with his duties in Lebanon.
According to a judicial source, Mr. Diab as well as the former ministers Ali Hassan Khalil (finance), Ghazi Zeaïter (public works and transport, 2014-2016) and Youssef Fenianos (public works and transport, 2016-2020) were charged with “Negligence and causing death”. Judge Fadi Sawan will begin questioning the defendants on Monday, according to the same source.
Mr Diab’s office reacted immediately, claiming that he had “A clear conscience”. “He is sure to have his hands clean and to have managed the file (…) in a responsible and transparent manner. This surprising targeting goes beyond the person and attacks the job [de premier ministre] as such. ” He accused Judge Sawan of having “Violated the Constitution and bypassed Parliament”, adding that Mr. Diab had “Provided all the information he had concerning this file”.
On August 4, a blast at the Port of Beirut, triggered by a fire in a warehouse that had housed tons of careless ammonium nitrate for years, left more than 200 dead and 6,500 injured. It destroyed the port and parts of the capital.
Mr. Diab resigned a few days after the tragedy, under pressure from the streets, but today he continues to manage day-to-day affairs pending the formation of a new government. A few hours after the explosion, Hassan Diab himself had denounced the storage conditions of the cargo of ammonium nitrate. “It is unacceptable that a shipment of ammonium nitrate has been present for six years in a warehouse, without precautionary measures”, he had said.
Political, economic and social crisis
Judge Fadi Sawan’s decision was taken after the investigation “Confirmed that [les accusés] had received several written reports warning them against any procrastination to get rid of ammonium nitrate “, specified the same judicial source, adding that“They did not take the necessary measures to avoid the devastating explosion and the enormous damage”.
Lebanese authorities claimed after the explosion that 25 people, including port and customs officials, had been arrested in connection with the investigation, but had not released any findings on responsibility.
In this drama, much of public opinion criticized the leaders and politicians, almost unchanged for decades and accused of corruption and incompetence. Senior officials were warned of the danger posed by the presence of ammonium nitrate but took no action.
On December 4, Lebanese Hezbollah, a powerful armed movement and heavyweight in Lebanese politics, announced that it was taking legal action against a former deputy and a political party who accused it of be responsible for the devastating explosion at the port of Beirut. In September, the United States imposed sanctions on two of the indicted ministers, Ali Hassan Khalil and Youssef Fenianos, accused of ” corruption “.
Judge Sawan last month asked Parliament to investigate several ministers and former ministers, including Messrs. Khalil, Fenianos and Zeaïter, suspected of having failed in their duty. According to the judicial source, Parliament did not respond to his request, which led to the indictment announced on Thursday.
The tragedy of the port has worsened the political, economic and social crisis in which Lebanon has been stuck for more than a year. In addition to a historic depreciation of its currency and hyperinflation, the country has been without a government for more than three months.
