Amnesty Int’l calls for an international probe of Beirut port blast

Amnesty International on Thursday blasted the obstruction of the probe by investigator Judge Tarek Bitar of the Beirut port blast

“Judge Bitar should be allowed to resume his work immediately. But the international community should also heed the victims’ calls for an international investigation,” Amnesty’s MENA dept. tweeted on its official account.

“The Lebanese authorities have made it patently clear that they are not interested in truth or justice and that they will use all the tools at their disposal to obstruct the domestic investigation and protect the politicians charged in the case,” Amnesty added.

It also lamented that “it is absurd to see the judiciary acting swiftly to penalize families of the victims who are demanding justice for throwing stones at the Judicial Palace, while almost 2.5 years after the Beirut blast that decimated over half the city, no one has been held to account.”

This is not the first time that Amnesty calls for an International Investigation.

Immediately following the blast that took place on Aug 4, 2020 that killed hundreds of people and left thousands injured and hundreds of thousands homeless , Julie Verhaar, Acting Secretary General of Amnesty International was quoted as saying :

“The horrific scenes in the aftermath of the explosion yesterday were devastating for a country already suffering under the strain of multiple crises. Our thoughts are with the victims and their families at this tragic time”. and added

“Whatever may have caused the explosion, including the possibility of a large amount of ammonium nitrate stored unsafely, Amnesty International is calling for an international mechanism to be promptly set up to investigate how this happened.”

News Agencies/ Amnesty