Investigating judge Tarek Bitar. (Credit: L'Orient-Le Jour archive photo)
In a striking twist in the investigation into the 2020 Beirut Port explosion, investigative judge Tarek Bitar — in charge of the case before the Judicial Council — was questioned on Thursday in the presence of parties he himself had previously indicted.MP and former minister Ali Hassan Khalil (Amal Movement) and former Customs Director Badri Daher joined a complaint for “usurpation of power” filed against him in January 2023 by former top prosecutor, [i.e., public prosecutor at the Court of Cassation] Ghassan Oueidat.The complaint followed Bitar’s decision to resume his investigation more than a year after it had been suspended due to multiple motions to disqualify him, widely viewed as abusive. Some context Tarek Bitar's questioning in court postponed due to procedural error Bitar relied on a legal study and precedent asserting...
In a striking twist in the investigation into the 2020 Beirut Port explosion, investigative judge Tarek Bitar — in charge of the case before the Judicial Council — was questioned on Thursday in the presence of parties he himself had previously indicted.MP and former minister Ali Hassan Khalil (Amal Movement) and former Customs Director Badri Daher joined a complaint for “usurpation of power” filed against him in January 2023 by former top prosecutor, [i.e., public prosecutor at the Court of Cassation] Ghassan Oueidat.The complaint followed Bitar’s decision to resume his investigation more than a year after it had been suspended due to multiple motions to disqualify him, widely viewed as abusive. Some context Tarek Bitar's questioning in court postponed due to procedural error Bitar relied on a legal study and precedent...
