Court of Cassation Rejects Khalil, Zoaiter’s Request for Bitar’s Removal

Court of Cassation Rejects Khalil, Zoaiter’s Request for Bitar’s Removal

The Civilian Court of Cassation on Monday dismissed a petition filed by ex-minister Ali Hassan Khalil and Ghazi Zoaiter for the removal of Judge Tarek Bitar, the lead investigative judge into the Beirut port blast.

The Court argued that it is not the right authority to look into the request seeing as Bitar is not one of its judges and that his jurisdiction does not make him affiliated with the public prosecution.

Lebanon's Court of Appeals had last Monday rejected similar lawsuits filed by Khalil, Zoaiter and ex-interior minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq, in a decision that allowed Bitar to resume his work.

The subsequent lawsuits are part of a growing campaign by Lebanon's political class against the investigation into the devastating port explosion of Aug. 4, 2020. The blast heavily destroyed parts of Beirut, killed over 200 people and wounded over 6,000.

In their lawsuits, the three former ministers accused the judge of bias.

Families of the Beirut blast victims have welcomed the resumption of the probe, urging the judge to continue his investigation and appealing to the political class to let him do his job.

The ruling political class, accused by rights groups and the public of knowing about the explosive material stored at the port