Lebanon asks Interpol to detain two Russians over Beirut blast

The lead investigator into the August blast at Beirut’s port that killed almost 200 and wounded thousands has issued arrest warrants for the captain and owner of a ship that carried thousands of tonnes of ammonium nitrate to Beirut seven years ago, the state-run National News Agency (NNA) said. Nearly 2,700 tonnes of ammonium nitrate stored at Beirut’s port exploded on August 4, killing 193, wounding about 6,500, and leaving nearly 300,000 people homeless. On Thursday, judge Fadi Sawwan referred the case to the state prosecution that asked Interpol to detain the two Russian citizens. NNA did not give the names of the two men but Boris Prokoshev was the captain who sailed the MV Rhosus from Turkey to Beirut in 2013. Igor Grechushkin, a Russian businessman residing in the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, bought the cargo ship in 2012 from Cypriot businessman Charalambos Manoli. Grechushkin was questioned by police at the request of Interpol’s Lebanon office in August. style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0; bottom: 0; right: 0; left: 0;">