Beirut blast victims want the truth

BEIRUT — Days after a massive explosion ripped through Beirut’s port and disfigured the Lebanese capital, family members of some of the 211 people killed in the blast demanded an international probe.

It was a swift vote of no confidence in the authorities’ ability to investigate one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history and one of the nation’s most traumatic experiences.

The skepticism was justified. Lebanon, a country wrought by political violence and assassinations, has a history of unfinished prosecutions and buried secrets.

Six months after the Aug. 4 blast, the domestic investigation has been brought to a virtual halt by the same political and confessional rivalries that thwarted past attempts to uncover the truth in major crimes.

What started as an investigation into how nearly 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate, a highly explosive fertilizer component, were stored in Beirut port for years with politicians’ and security agencies’ knowledge has taken a turn, wading into a web of murky international business interests in the explosives trade and global shipping.

Government officials rebuffed an international probe and appointed former military court judge Fadi Sawwan to investigate. He has largely focused on government incompetence amid public anger at a corrupt political class blamed for Lebanon’s slide into poverty and upheaval.

In a rare move, Sawwan charged two former ministers and the current prime minister with negligence, triggering pushback.

The prime minister refused to appear for questioning, calling it “diabolic” to single him out for charges. The ministers challenged the judge and asked Lebanon’s highest court to replace him in a move that brought the probe to a halt since Dec. 17.