Calls for prosecuting President Michel Aoun mounted on Friday over his failure to take action to remove a massive quantity of ammonium nitrate stored at the Beirut Port unsafely for years, and avert the devastating Aug. 4 blast.
The explosion of the chemicals at the port killed more than 200 people and caused huge destruction in many Beirut neighborhoods and surrounding areas.
Calls to prosecute Aoun came after Lebanon's outgoing Prime Minister Hassan Diab, former finance minister Ali Hassan Khalil, as well as Ghazi Zoaiter and Youssef Fenianos, both ex-ministers of public works, were charged on Thursday with negligence over the blast.
Presidential sources said any attempt to hold Aoun accountable aims at politicizing the case.
Former minister and ex-Bar Association President Rashid Derbas explained to Asharq Al-Awsat that Article 60 of the constitution says the president shall not be held responsible except when he violates the constitution or in the case of high treason, unlike the prime minister and ministers, who can be taken to trial for crimes resulting from job negligence.
But such actions need parliamentary approval, he said.
The move by Judge Fadi Sawwan to exercise his jurisdiction to accuse government officials came after he sent a letter and documents to parliament last month, informing lawmakers of serious suspicions relating to government officials and asking them to investigate. The MPs responded by saying that the material they received did not point to any professional wrongdoing.
Derbas said that when issuing the charges, Sawwan made a violation after failing to respond to parliament’s request for more documents.
According to Derbas, the judge also failed to charge all officials whose names were included in the letter and documents.
Derbas said the president failed to act by virtue of his position as head of the Supreme Defense Council and as president of the republic, to invite the government and alert the public opinion that the relevant authorities are not carrying out their responsibilities.
Several parties, including former prime ministers and head of the Progressive Socialist Party Walid Jumblat, demanded on Friday that Aoun be held accountable for the explosion.
“If there is true impartiality, it would be better to request the testimony of President Aoun, who said that he learned about the presence of the ammonium nitrate on July 20, that is 15 days before the explosion, which was sufficient to avoid what happened,” former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said in a televised interview.
Siniora added that the President knew about the chemicals and failed to take action.
Ex-PM Najib Mikati also stressed that the judiciary cannot ignore the president’s acknowledgment of knowing about the ammonium nitrate.
