Jamal Hajjar, the new public prosecutor at the Court of Cassation, and Tarek Bitar, the judge in charge of investigating the explosion at the port of Beirut, held their first meeting on Thursday.
Although Judge Bitar contented himself with describing the purpose and conclusions of the meeting as “secret,” This Is Beirut has learned that it focused mainly on “the modalities for unblocking the investigation” and on possible cooperation between the Public Prosecutor’s Office and Judge Bitar.
The investigation has been suspended for over two years due to the numerous appeals lodged against Judge Bitar and the dissensions between him and former prosecutor, Ghassan Oueidat, who retired on February 22.
Judges Hajjar and Bitar are due to hold a second meeting next week.
In this context, This Is Beirut has learned that a civilian party involved in the case intends to submit a request to the prosecutor to suspend or annul all decisions previously taken by Judge Oueidat against Tarek Bitar.
