Beirut port probe suspended again as judge issues warrant for ex-minister

Former Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil was sanctioned by the US government last year for corruption.
Illustration picture shows ground zero at a visit to the 'Ground Zero' site and memorial of the Beirut Port explosion of August 2020, in Beirut, Lebanon, part of a six days working visit in Jordan and Lebanon of Belgian cooperation minister Kitir, in Amman, Jordan, Sept. 22, 2021
The 'Ground Zero' site of the Beirut Port explosion from August 2020 looms in the background of this photo taken on Sept. 22, 2021. - NICOLAS MAETERLINCK/BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty Images
Al Monitor: The Pulse of the Middle East
Al-Monitor Staff

The lead investigator for the 2020 Beirut port explosion issued an arrest warrant Tuesday for a former government minister, shortly before the probe was suspended again.

Judge Tarek Bitar issued the warrant in absentia for former Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil after the latter failed to appear before investigators, the official National News Agency reported.

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