Lebanon: Hezbollah slams indictment over Beirut blast
Group claims political targeting, bias in judge’s decision, want case re-examined
Cairo: Lebanon’s Iran-allied Hezbollah movement Friday rejected a judicial decision charging caretaker prime minister Hassan Diab and ex-officials with negligence over a fatal explosion that hit Beirut earlier this year, claiming it is politically motivated.
On Thursday, investigative judge Fadi Sawan also charged former ministers Ali Hassan, Ghazi Zaieter and Youssef Fenianos in the same case and said he will question them next week.
Hezbollah claimed that the four were “politically targeted”.
“We confirm our keenness that all procedures taken by the investigative judge are remote from politics and bias,’ the party said in a statement.
Re-examine the case
“But we have not seen this in the latest procedures. Consequently, we categorically reject absence of unified standards that has led to what we believe is political targeting of certain persons and ignoring others,’ Hezbollah added. The group urged the judge to re-examine the case.
Following the indictment, Diab said he has a “clear conscience” and is “confident of my integrity”. The August 4 blast at the Beirut Port killed around 200 people and injured other thousands.
The explosion fuelled public discontent and forced the Diab government to resign and continue work in a caretaker capacity. The indictment of Diab and the three ex-officials comes amid Lebanon’s worst economic crisis in decades.