A key legal opinion in the investigation into the 2020 Beirut port explosion is expected within the next one to two months, Annahar reported, citing judicial sources.

Prosecutor General at the Court of Cassation Judge Mohammad Saab is expected to issue his legal opinion on the case within two months at the latest, according to Annahar.

A judicial source told the newspaper that investigating judge Tarek Bitar has two months to issue his indictment decision in the case, while stressing that investigations remain ongoing to establish the circumstances of the explosion and determine those responsible.

The source described the Beirut port blast case as “complex and intertwined,” pointing to the sheer volume of material in the investigation. The file contains thousands of pages of documents, enough to fill an entire room, the source said.

The investigation is also examining the nature of the materials that exploded at the port and whether the entire quantity stored there detonated.

The source noted that when large quantities of ammunition or explosive materials are detonated at a single location, some material can remain at the site depending on its nature and the surrounding circumstances. Determining what happened to the materials at the port is therefore among the issues still being examined by investigators.

The judicial source cautioned against drawing firm conclusions before the investigation is completed.

“Nothing can be determined” with certainty at this stage, the source said, stressing that the authorities must first establish the circumstances surrounding the explosion and determine the responsibilities linked to it.

The source also emphasized the human dimension of the case, saying it concerns all Lebanese.

The August 4, 2020 explosion at Beirut port killed more than 200 people, injured thousands and devastated large parts of the capital. The blast was widely attributed to the detonation of a huge stockpile of ammonium nitrate that had been stored at the port for years.