Hundreds gather at Beirut port to demand justice and mark four years since devastating explosion

With an atmosphere thick with frustration and grief, hundreds of Lebanese converged on the Beirut port on Sunday to mark four years since the catastrophic explosion that killed more than 220 people and injured at least 6,500.

The protesters, marching in several planned demonstrations, demanded justice as Lebanese authorities continued to hinder the investigation and evade accountability.

The August 4, 2020, explosion was triggered by a fire in a warehouse where a stockpile of ammonium nitrate fertiliser had been haphazardly stored for years.

The blast became one of history's largest non-nuclear explosions, and large parts of the Lebanese capital were devastated. Despite international organisations documenting failures and mistakes by officials, no one has been held responsible for what has been dubbed the "crime of the century", with the investigation mired in legal and political wrangling.

In December 2020, lead investigator Fadi Sawan charged former Prime Minister Hassan Diab and three ex-ministers with negligence. However, Sawan was removed from the case amid political pressure. His successor, Tarek Bitar, faced similar obstacles, including lawsuits and refusals to lift parliamentary immunity for MPs who were formerly cabinet ministers. Since February 2023, the investigation has been at a standstill.

Judge Bitar remains sidelined, and the new Prosecutor General, Judge Jamal Hajjar, has yet to take action following his predecessor Judge Ghassan Oueidat's charge against Bitar for "usurpation of power".

The UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, called the lack of accountability staggering and urged an impartial, thorough, and transparent investigation to deliver truth and justice. This year's commemoration took place under the looming threat of a regional conflict, with fears of an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah casting a shadow over the event.