Lebanon’s Prime Minister Charged Over Beirut Explosion

Lebanon’s Prime minister and three former ministers have been charged over the massive port explosion in Beirut that occurred in August, that killed over 200 people and destroyed swathes of the city. Judge Fadi Sawan filed the charges against Hassan Diab and former finance minister Ali Hassan Khalil, as well as Ghazi Zeiter and Youssef Fenianos, both former ministers of public works.

All four were charged with negligence leading to deaths over the 4 August explosion at Beirut port, which killed more than 200 people and injured thousands. The explosion was likely caused by 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate that had been poorly stored at the port for years, with the knowledge of politicians, top security officials and even the prime minister and president.

Mr Diab, whose cabinet resigned over the August blast after taking office in early 2020, rejected Judge Sawan’s decision saying his conscience was clear and accused the judge of breaching the constitution. His office has indicated they will not comply, saying in a statement that the judge had violated the constitution by overstepping the role of parliament, which has a special court to indict ministers.