Resistance to the judge's decisions appeared in the courts, political life and the streets

Lebanon's politicians are delaying the investigation into the Beirut port explosion

• Beirut Port Explosion .. The perpetrator is still unknown.

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• Some expressed their objection to the farrier in the streets.

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It was decided to resume the investigation into the Beirut port explosion, which occurred last year, after a court rejected the latest lawsuits that led to the investigation being suspended for more than a month.

The investigation of the blast, one of the largest non-nuclear explosions ever recorded in the world, has faced resistance from a political system that has perpetuated impunity since the end of the 1975-90 civil war.

Here is some information about the confrontation:

• What does the judge investigate?

The explosion caused by chemicals that had been stored in the port for more than six years, killed more than 215 people, injured thousands, and destroyed large swathes of Beirut.

Judge Tariq Al-Bitar, 47, wants to question a number of senior politicians and security officials.

Human Rights Watch said that high-ranking government and security officials "expected a great danger to life...and implicitly accepted the risk of deaths."

Al-Bitar's efforts won the support of many Lebanese, who expressed their unchecked rejection of decades of corruption and mismanagement.

• Who does the judge want to question?

Some people who are very powerful influence.

Among the most prominent of these are former Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil, the right-hand man of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and an ally of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group, and Major General Abbas Ibrahim, head of Lebanon's General Security.

The judge also sought to question Hassan Diab, an academic who was prime minister at the time of the explosion.

Many could face prison sentences if convicted of negligence, or causing deaths, although Lebanon does not have a track record of holding people in high positions to account, and all deny wrongdoing.

• How are Al-Bitar's efforts obstructed?

The judge sought to question a number of current and former officials, but all the suspects refused, arguing that they enjoyed immunity or that he did not have the authority to do so.

Resistance to the judge's decisions appeared in the courts, in political life, and in the streets.

The suspects have contested Al-Bitar before the courts in more than 20 legal cases seeking to disqualify him due to allegations of bias and “grave errors,” which led to the investigation being suspended several times.

Former ministers say any cases against them should be heard by a court, especially for presidents and ministers.

That court has never held a single official accountable, and will transfer control of the investigation to the ruling parties in parliament, which is likely to dashed hopes for accountability.

Sectarian sensitivities also emerged.

The move against Diab, for example, drew objections from Sunni political and religious leaders, who said it was an attempt to target the position of prime minister, a position reserved for Sunnis in Lebanon's sectarian political system.

• Why accuse Hezbollah?

Al-Bitar did not accuse any known members of Hezbollah, the Shiite group with strong political influence and a militia that possesses a large arsenal of weapons.

But the judge's actions, including his attempts to interrogate powerful figures allied with Hezbollah as suspects, led the group to accuse him of bias.

And in September, a senior Hezbollah official sent a letter to Al-Bitar, warning him that the group would “undercover” him, meaning that it would exclude him from the investigation.

Hezbollah and its allies lobbied for the removal of al-Bitar through the executive branch, sparking a row that paralyzed the government.

Hezbollah and its allies called a demonstration against Al-Bitar last October, which soon turned into deadly violence.

Hezbollah accused the United States, which classifies the group as a terrorist organization, of interfering in the investigation, but the US ambassador in Beirut denied this.

Hezbollah denied the accusations leveled against it at the time of the explosion, that it had a weapons depot in the port, and said it had nothing to do with the explosion.

His opponents have long accused him of controlling the port, which the party also denies.

• What is at stake?

For reform advocates, the dispute over the investigation is part of a broader struggle over the rule of law and accountability for corruption and mismanagement that has led to other disasters as well, including the financial meltdown in Lebanon.

Critics say the political elite uses its influence to block any attempt to set a precedent for holding officials accountable, and wants to bury any scrutiny of port management, a microcosm of the sectarian system that divides public resources to serve the interests of key players rather than the state.

Beirut's already strained relations with Western governments, whose assistance could be vital to pull Lebanon out of its economic crisis, could be further damaged if the investigation is torpedoed.

• The judge sought to question a number of current and former officials, but all the suspects refused on the grounds that they enjoyed immunity or that he did not have the authority to do so.

• The suspects have contested Al-Bitar before the courts in more than 20 legal cases seeking to disqualify him due to allegations of bias and “grave mistakes,” which led to the suspension of the investigation several times.

• For reform advocates, the controversy over the investigation is part of a broader struggle over the rule of law and accountability for the corruption and mismanagement that led to other disasters, including the financial meltdown in Lebanon.

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