ALBAWABA - Lebanese judge Tarek Bitar has charged Prosecutor-General Ghassan Oueidat and judges Ghassan Khoury, Carla Shawwah and Jad Maalouf in the 2020 Beirut blast case, a judicial official told AFP on Tuesday.
Bitar said he resumed probe into the devastating Aug. 4, 2020 explosion that killed more than 200 people and injured 7,000 others.
#UPDATE The Lebanese judge probing the Beirut port blast has charged Prosecutor-General Ghassan Oueidat and three judges, a first in the country's history, a judicial official told @AFP pic.twitter.com/C6RiT1vH8C
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) January 24, 2023
This comes amid continued protests by relatives of the victims of the Beirut blast who are calling for justice three years after the explosion.
Investigation in the explosion was blocked in December 2021 pending a Court of Cassation ruling after three former Cabinet ministers filed legal challenges against him.
In addition, the Lebanese judge also charged Higher Customs Council chief Asaad Toufaili, and Higher Customs Council member Gracia al-Qazzi, General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim and State Security chief Maj. Gen. Tony Saliba.
In total, 13 people are being prosecuted, including five officials whom Bitar indicted earlier, including former Prime Minister Hassan Diab.
