BEIRUT, December 7, Reuters -- An investigation into last year's Beirut blast is set to resume at www.reuters. A 20 judicial 20 source 20 said after a court rejected the last of several lawsuits that had led to the probe being suspended for more than a month, a middle-east beirut-blast probe-judge cleared-continue investigation - BEIRUT 2 C 207% 20 Reuters Bitar 2 C 20 a 20 source 20 said.
The investigation into the blast, one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions ever recorded, has faced a backlash from a political system where impunity has been established since the end of the 1975 -- 1990 civil war.
The explosion that was caused by chemicals left at the port for more than six years and killed more than 215 people, injured thousands and devastated swathes of Beirut was caused by the chemicals left at the port for more than six years.
Judge Tarek Bitar, 47, wants to interview several senior politicians and security officials.
Human Rights Watch said that high-level security and government officials were aware of the threat to life and tacitly accepted the risk of deaths occurring.
Bitar's efforts have become a rally cry for many Lebanese against decades of corruption and mismanagement.
Most prominent are former finance minister Ali Hassan Khalil, who is the right-hand man of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and an ally of the Iran-backed Hezbollah, and Major General Abbas Ibrahim, head of Lebanon's General Security.
The judge tried to question Hassan Diab, an academic who was prime minister at the time of the blast.
Many of them could face prison time if convicted of negligence or causing deaths, although Lebanon has no track record of holding to account people in top positions.
All of the current and former officials of Bitar have tried to question because they resisted, arguing that they have immunity or lacks authority to prosecute them.
This resistance to his actions has played out in the courts, in political life and on the streets.
Suspects have swamped courts with more than two dozen legal cases seeking Bitar's removal over alleged bias and grave mistakes, which resulted in several suspensions of the probe.
Any cases against them should be heard by a special court for presidents and ministers, according to the ex-ministers.
The court has never held a single official accountable, and it would pass control of the probe to the ruling parties in parliament, likely burying hopes of accountability.
Sectarian sensitivities have been brought into play by the fact that they have been brought into play.
For example, the move against Diab sparked objections from Sunni Muslim political and religious leaders who said it was an attempt to target the position of prime minister, which is reserved for a Sunni in Lebanon's sectarian political system.
Bitar has not charged any of the known members of Hezbollah, a Shi'ite Muslim group that has powerful political influence and a heavily armed militia. The judge's actions, including his attempts to question powerful figures allied to Hezbollah as suspects, have prompted the group to accuse him of bias.
In September, a senior Hezbollah official sent him a message warning that the group would uproot him.
Hezbollah and its allies have pushed for Bitar's removal via the executive branch, sparking a row that has resulted in a splintered government.
In October, Hezbollah called for an anti-Bitar protest that escalated into deadly violence.
Hezbollah accused the United States of meddling in the investigation, which lists the group as a terrorist organisation. The U.S. ambassador has denied this.
Hezbollah denied the accusations made at the time of the blast that it had an arms warehouse at the port and said it had nothing to do with the explosion. Its adversaries have accused the group of controlling the port for a long time, something it denies.
For advocates of reform, the tussle over the probe is part of a wider struggle about the rule of law and bringing to account officials for corruption and bad governance responsible for other catastrophes, including Lebanon's financial meltdown.
Critics say the elite are using their influence to block any attempt to set a precedent of holding officials to account and burying scrutiny of the port's management, which is a microcosm of the sectarian system that gives out public resources to serve the interests of major players, not the state.
Beirut's already strained ties with Western governments, whose help could prove vital in lifting Lebanon out of its economic crisis, may suffer further if the probe is torpedoed.