Ibrahim Harb, a young man who went into a coma after suffering injuries from the Beirut port explosion, died overnight Monday, local media report. (Credit: Twitter/@salmanonline)
BEIRUT — Ibrahim Harb, a young man who went into a coma after sustaining injuries during the Beirut port explosion, died overnight Monday, local media report.
Here’s what we know:
• Harb, who was from Beirut’s Bashoura area, had undergone a head operation after sustaining the injuries but had never regained the ability to speak.
• The 2020 Beirut port explosion claimed the lives of more than 200 people; injured thousands; and displaced more than 300,000, according to Human Rights Watch.
• The investigation into the explosion was suspended yesterday after the lead investigator, Tarek Bitar, was officially notified of a complaint filed against him in the Beirut Court of Appeals by MP and former Interior Minister Nohad Machnouk. In fact, Bitar has four cases pending against him, but legal analysts have suggested that they amount to little more than a stalling tactic until those implicated in the lawsuits, including Machnouk, regain immunity from prosecution when Parliament convenes for its regular session on Oct. 19.