Judge Seeks Arrest of Ex-minister Charged in Beirut Blast

Judge Seeks Arrest of Ex-minister Charged in Beirut Blast
A monument that represents justice stands in front of towering grain silos that were gutted in the massive August 2020 explosion at the port that killed more than 200 people and wounded over 6,000, in Beirut, Lebanon on Aug. 4, 2021. Hussein Malla/AP Photo File
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BEIRUT—The lead judge investigating Lebanon’s massive port explosion last year issued an arrest warrant on Thursday for a former minister who failed to appear for questioning, the state-run National News agency reported.

It was the first such warrant in the year-old probe that has hit many snags, particularly in implicating senior government officials in what was one of the largest non-nuclear explosions ever recorded. It’s unclear how authorities will respond to the warrant.