Six years after thousands of tonnes of improperly stored ammonium nitrate detonated at the port of Beirut on August 4, 2020, killing more than 235 people and wounding over 6,000, grieving families and victims’ relatives marked the somber anniversary on Wednesday by demanding the public release of the long-delayed judicial indictment.
The catastrophe, which ranks among the largest non-nuclear explosions in modern history, destroyed roughly 77,000 apartments and devastated a wide swath of the Lebanese capital, including the port’s mammoth grain silos. For six years, survivors and families have faced a wall of institutional silence and political obstruction that stalled the investigation led by Judge Tarek Bitar. While recent political shifts have injected renewed momentum into the stagnant legal proceedings, accountability remains agonizingly out of reach for those who lost children, spouses, and colleagues in the blast.
Six Years of Grief and a Stalled Pursuit of Truth
Port employees, firefighters, nurses, and children were among the dead when the blast ripped through Beirut at 6:07 p.m. local time on August 4, 2020. Among the victims was nurse Jessica Bezdjian, whose father, George Bezdjian, found her body at St. Georges Hospital after the facility was heavily shattered by the shockwave. The disaster compounded an ongoing economic free-fall driven by decades of corruption and financial crimes.
Memorial marches and solemn rallies returned to the port site as crowds demanded answers for the disaster. Protesters read aloud the names of the dead facing the wrecked grain silos, which withstood the initial blast force before partially collapsing in 2022 following a series of fires.
“Can someone tell me why five years on we’re still standing here? If everyone stands with this cause, then who’s against us?”
William Noun, whose brother Joseph, a firefighter, was killed by the blast
William Noun stood on a stage near the port to voice the collective frustration of families demanding closure. Paul Naggear, whose three-year-old daughter Alexandra died in the neighborhood surrounding the port, emphasized that the families want a complete and comprehensive preliminary indictment that names the officials responsible for failing to evacuate neighborhoods or secure the deadly chemical stockpile.
Political Interference and the Legal Battleground
The legal investigation faced systematic gridlock from the outset.
The political paralysis was further compounded by a catastrophic economic collapse, government dysfunction, and a devastating war between Hezbollah and Israel beginning in 2023. That conflict stalled Judge Bitar’s efforts to release an indictment previously aimed for the prior year.
New Leadership and the Path to Indictment
The political and judicial landscape shifted following the arrival of President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam at the beginning of 2025. Both leaders came to power on reform platforms pledging to prioritize justice for the victims. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam stated that there will be no settlement in the port case before there is accountability,
while President Aoun publicly called on the judiciary to prove its independence and capacity to deliver justice without further delay.
Galvanized by the new political climate, Judge Bitar resumed active steps, submitting his investigative findings in late March to the Prosecutor General’s Office at the Court of Cassation. Four judicial officials and two security officials confirmed that Bitar is currently refining an additional phase of his investigation—now spanning approximately 1,200 pages—with the aim of releasing the long-awaited indictment by the end of the year.
Before finalizing the report, Bitar is awaiting a fourth and final technical report from France, which conducted its own probe regarding French citizens killed in the blast. He is also seeking to hear testimonies from roughly 15 witnesses and is coordinating with European and Arab authorities to question foreign suspects linked to the vessel that delivered the ammonium nitrate to Beirut.
Skepticism and the Unresolved Fate of Justice
Despite administrative movement, deep skepticism persists among victims’ relatives. Judge Mohammad Saab, appointed by Attorney General Ramy Hage to review the voluminous case file, has faced criticism from families for moving too slowly, though legal sources note he is working day and night and could conclude his review within months according to Justice Minister Adel Nassar’s statements.
“The judiciary and the army are infiltrated,” he said. “There is nothing left to hope for from that quarter. To the crime of silence (about the presence of ammonium nitrate at the port of Beirut) is added the actual crime of the explosion, as well as a third crime: impunity.”
Dr Nazih el-Adem, who lost his daughter Kristel in the blast
Other families, however, refuse to surrender their campaign. Cécile Roukoz, who lost her brother Joseph—an employee of the CMA-CGM shipping company—stressed that giving up is unthinkable
. Whether the newly pledged political backing will finally overcome institutional inertia and force a definitive judicial reckoning before another year passes remains the central, unanswered question confronting Lebanon’s legal system.
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