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The head of the Lebanese provisional government, Hassan Diab, revealed new details about the Beirut port explosion, which took place on August 4.
According to Diab’s statements, the FPI report estimated that the amount of ammonium nitrate that exploded inside the Beirut port was 500 tons.
At the time, the Lebanese authorities attributed the cause of the explosion to a fire in a warehouse in which 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate had been stored unsafely for almost six years.
Diab said in a press interview at the Prime Minister’s headquarters, according to a statement from his media office, that “the (FBI) report revealed that the quantity that exploded was only 500 tons,” and asked: “Where did the remaining 2,200 tons go?”
He added: “Who owns the boat? How did he get in? Who allowed him to do it? Who has been silent about it for so long? Do the security services know?”
He stated: “This year we have held 20 sessions of the Supreme Defense Council, and nobody from the security forces informed us about that (the amount of ammonium nitrate)”, adding that “from 2014 until now, nobody from the Supreme Council of Defense has informed the President of the Republic as owner of the existence of these materials. “
Also read: The investigator went to dismiss the explosion of the port of Beirut after political pressure
President Diab asked, “Did any of the Lebanese know before August 4 what ammonium nitrate means?” And explained that “the first official report I received was on July 22.”
Regarding the reason for not visiting the port, he said: “I was informed of 3 different information in a period of two hours on June 3. The first I received from the security services by chance that there were 2000 kilograms of TNT in the port, and I immediately requested to arrange a port visit. “
He continued: “During the security preparations for my visit, it became clear that there is different information about what I reported first, first: that it weighed 2,500 tons and not 2,000 kilograms, and second: it is not TNT but nitrate, of which we knew nothing. We searched the internet and found out it was a chemical fertilizer. “
The third piece of information, according to Diab, is that these materials have been in the port for seven years and are not new.
He said: “I told you that while the file is still under investigation, and there are three different pieces of information, let the investigation be completed, complete the file and send it to me, and then I will visit the port with evidence. The report came to me on the 22nd July “, that is, days before the explosion.
A team from the “FPI” participated in the initial investigation and the Lebanese side provided a copy of their report. French researchers participated in the evidence collection process.
Lebanon refused to conduct an international investigation into the explosion, which severely damaged the country’s main port and several neighborhoods in the capital, killing more than two hundred people and injuring more than 6,500, as well as displacing tens of thousands of people. families from their homes that were damaged or destroyed.
In response to a question about Judge Sawan’s recent decision, Diab said: “The constitution is above all else and I mean the constitution, and Article 70 governs this issue, and if there is a claim and a record, send it to the House of Representatives. “
Authorities have been investigating the explosion since it occurred, but the judicial investigator, Fadi Sawan, announced this month that the investigations would be suspended for ten days, after two former ministers who were charged in a memorandum requested that the case be transferred to another judge. , a judicial source informed AFP.
On December 10, Sawan had indicted Diab and three former ministers, namely: former Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil, and former Labor Ministers Ghazi Zuaiter and Youssef Fenianous, but none of them appeared before him in sessions that he identified for questioning as “accused”. .
The four people are the first political officials indicted by Sawan in the case, according to which at least 25 high-ranking officials responsible for the administration and security of the port were arrested.
Also read: News of Hassan Diab’s refusal to be questioned in the Beirut port case
Diab declined to be questioned in the case, according to Reuters sources. Zuaiter and Hassan Khalil subsequently submitted a memorandum to the Court of Cassation, which has not yet decided on the request for transfer of the case, as quoted by “France Press”.
The accusation made by Judge Fadi Sawan last week drew strong criticism from influential parties, including Hezbollah and Saad Hariri.
On the sixth of this month, Sawan pleaded guilty to the administration and investment of the port on charges of “negligence, negligence and causing the death” of people, according to a judicial source informed AFP.
The blast sparked outrage among the Lebanese, especially after various reports and sources confirmed that authorities, including current and former security services, presidents and officials, were aware of the storage of “ammonium nitrate” at the port and its dangers.
The protests led to the resignation of Prime Minister Hassan Diab, a week after the explosion disaster.
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