Ya Libnan

Hezbollah chief attacks Lebanese Judge probing Beirut port blast

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Beirut

FILE PHOTO: The High Judicial Council named judge Tarek Bitar (47) as the new Lebanese prosecutor to lead probe into Beirut blast , a day after his predecessor Judge Fadi Sawwan was removed. Bitar who is from Akkar region of north Lebanon served as the head of the Criminal Court in Beirut since 2017.

On the occasion marking the 15th anniversary of the “July 2006”, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, attacked the investigative judge in the Beirut port explosion, saying: “What is required of the investigative judge is the the announcement of the result of the technical investigation, and I say that there is discretion and this judicial investigator is.” He’s playing politics.”

Nasrallah stressed that “Hezbollah is not afraid of the investigation because it is not accused by the judicial authorities in the port explosion case, and it is not afraid of the judiciary. Hezbollah did not bring the ammonium nitrate and has nothing to do with it. Rather, we are afraid that the truth will be lost.”

The Lebanese judge investigating last year’s Beirut port blast announced legal procedures against a number of politicians and security chiefs, including the a caretaker PM .

This August 5, 2020 file photo, is the scene of an explosion that hit the seaport of Beirut, Lebanon. 217 killed ,7000 Injured after several hundred tons of ammonium nitrate exploded . 2750 tons were stored there for nearly 7 years, reportedly for use by the Syrian regime in its barrel bombs. The shipment was reportedly confiscated by Badri Daher a close associate of President Michel Aoun and his son-in-law Gebran Bassil , both are allied with the Syrian regime . The shipment arrived at a time when Syria was surrendering its chemical weapons to a UN backed organization for destruction . Aoun officially knew about the Ammonium Nitrate 2 weeks before the explosion but did nothing about it . He , along with his Hezbollah allies refused an international investigation but promised a local investigation that will bring the culprits to justice in less than a week but 8 months later not one politician has been charged. According to an investigation by FBI only 20 % of the chemical exploded . Several intelligence reports revealed that Hezbollah shipped most of the nitrate to Syria and used the rest in Germany , UK and Cyprus (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, Beirut, Lebanon(Photo by Anwar Amro/AFP)

The move – nearly a year after the blast – was praised by families of the victims and survivors as a bold step by Judge Tarek Bitar.

Judge Bitar, who became the lead investigator into the blast after his predecessor was removed in February, will call in caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab and others, according to Lebanese media reports

Bitar also asked the government and the interior ministry for permission to question two of Lebanon’s most prominent security chiefs – the head of General Security Directorate, Major-General Abbas Ibrahim, and the head of State Security, Major-General Tony Saliba.

Following the Aug 4 , 2020 blast president Michel Aoun was urged to call for an International investigation into the blast but he and Hezbollah refused and insisted on a local investigation. Aoun promised results within 5 days but so far not one politician has been indicted

No shame

Former MP Fares Saeed tweeted on his Twitter account, writing: “Sayed Hassan Nasrallah is not ashamed.”

He added, “He got rid of the first investigative judge regarding the port, and now he is getting rid of the second.”

He dded we are publicly in favor of getting rid of the Iranian occupation of Lebanon.”

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