Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Friday, Sep 19, 2025

Lebanon blast relatives questioned by police after protest

Lebanon blast relatives questioned by police after protest

Family members of the victims of the 2020 Beirut port explosion were called in for questioning after they were accused of rioting at protests last week.

Several relatives of the victims of the massive 2020 explosion at Beirut’s port have been questioned by police after they were accused of rioting and vandalism during protests over the stalled investigation into the blast.

Thirteen family members answered a police summons on Monday while hundreds more relatives of blast victims, politicians and activists protested outside Beirut’s police compound, where the questioning took place.

Some relatives threw rocks at the Beirut Justice Palace and burned tyres outside the building during last week’s protests, as they decried what they say is police interference in the blast probe.

The August 4, 2020 explosion killed more than 215 people, injured 6,000 and devastated entire neighbourhoods of the Lebanese capital after hundreds of tonnes of highly explosive ammonium nitrate, a chemical used in fertilisers, detonated in a port warehouse.


It later emerged the chemical had been shipped to Lebanon in 2013 and stored improperly at the warehouse. A handful of senior political and security officials knew of its presence and the threat it posed to the city but failed to take action to remove it.

Judge Tarek Bitar’s investigation into the disaster has been frozen since December 2021 after politicians he charged in the case filed legal challenges to the probe. No one has been tried or convicted over the blast.

Protesters on Monday condemned the country’s ruling elite. They say the elite’s lock on power has kept its members immune from accountability.

William Noun, who lost his brother Joe, a firefighter, in the blast, has been an outspoken activist.

Summoned Monday, he later claimed the authorities were trying to exhaust and intimidate the families.

Security forces raided his home and detained him overnight on Saturday after he spoke in a TV interview and criticised the judiciary.

“We want justice, and we want everyone who blew up the port to be held accountable, regardless of their political affiliation,” he said as he walked into the compound.

Among the protesters outside was the mother of Ahmad Kaadan, who was killed in the blast. She held a poster of her son and decried what she said was Lebanon’s “failed state and judiciary”.

“Instead of bringing in the officials with arrest warrants, they’re going after the families wanting to know who killed their children,” Kaadan’s mother, who did not give her name, told reporters. “In this country, those on the side of justice are getting arrested while the criminals are enjoying their lives.”

The families, Lebanese activists and human rights organisations have urged the United Nations to investigate the blast.


Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Trump Backs Putin’s Land-for-Peace Proposal Amid Kyiv’s Rejection
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
United States Sells Luxury Yacht Amadea, Valued at Approximately $325 Million, in First Sale of a Seized Russian Yacht Since the Invasion of Ukraine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
×