Lebanese judge charges caretaker PM in port blast

Lebanon's official news agency says the prosecutor probing last summer’s port explosion in Beirut has filed charges against the caretaker prime minister and three former ministers

Lebanon Silos (Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

The Lebanese prosecutor probing last summer’s port explosion in Beirut has filed charges against the caretaker prime minister and three former ministers Lebanon’s official news agency said.

Judge Fadi Sawwan filed the charges Thursday against Hassan Diab and former Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil, as well as Ghazi Zeiter and Youssef Fenianos, both former ministers of public works.

All four were charged with negligence leading to deaths over the Aug. 4 explosion at Beirut port, which killed more than 200 people and injured thousands. The explosion was caused by the ignition of a large stockpile of explosive material that had been stored at the port for years.