The Association of Families of Beirut Port Explosion Victims issued a statement following their monthly vigil in front of the Migrant Statue at the Beirut Port, addressing the Chief Prosecutor Judge Jamal Al-Hajjar, saying: “A promise is a debt, especially when it concerns the blood of innocent victims and martyrs. You know that trust cannot be carried by mountains. Today, you are responsible for the fate of a nation and its citizens, and you bear a trust that must match its significance. We are tired of evasions and delays, tired of empty promises without hope; enough with the procrastination.”
They demanded that he "retract illegal decisions and put an end to the implications of Judge Aouidat’s coup and orchestrated actions, whether through the lack of cooperation from authorities and security forces with the investigating judge or the non-execution of arrest warrants or the release of detainees."
They viewed these actions as "malicious acts that contradict human values, especially in this crime," lamenting the appointment of Judge Aouidat to a prestigious position as Deputy Attorney General at the Court of Cassation, with overwhelming approval from the Higher Judicial Council to the Cabinet and Minister of Justice. It is clear that they want to obliterate the truth of the port explosion and eliminate what remains of the judiciary and some judges, allowing the law of the jungle to prevail after Beirut had been the mother of laws."
They stated: "We learned that the right rises high and cannot be surpassed. We studied that the law protects the oppressed from the oppressor, but we forget that in our country, concepts and norms change with every event and with each individual, and balances shift. Oh, Judge Jamal Al-Hajjar, judge with your conscience, it is our right to know the truth of the explosion and to hold the criminals accountable. Have you forgotten that it is your professional, ethical, and humanitarian duty to protect the oppressed because you are the head of the judiciary? Remember that the head of wisdom is the fear of God. Act according to your professional oath and know that history will not forgive anyone, and God sees what you do."
They added: "Today, you bear the blood of the victims and martyrs, and you must do justice to them. Is it conceivable that a case like the port explosion could pass as if nothing happened? A crime that shook the world did not shake your consciences. We now demand our simplest rights that you are obligated to provide us: our right to know the truth or our right to hold the criminals accountable? If there were a state of law or an independent judiciary, we would not need all of this, but unfortunately, this is what we lack."
The association addressed Judge Tarek Bitar, saying: "You still have legal interpretations and consider that you have the right to continue the investigation. What are the matters preventing you from doing so, and what are the obstacles, or rather, what are you waiting for? We have said before and we say it today, if you have no obstacles, go ahead and continue your investigations in this case, and let us see who will be the first to obstruct and who stands to gain from uncovering the truth and who is preventing you from exercising your legal powers in this file."
They added: "We are the children of this homeland, and we were killed in this homeland, and its soil embraced our victims. We have every right to know the criminals and hold them accountable and to know the truth of who detonated, orchestrated, and destroyed. Put yourselves, even for a moment, in our shoes—how would you feel? Would you accept your children being killed before your eyes without holding the criminal accountable? Would you agree for the blood of your children to be lost in the corridors of politics and the powerful?"
They concluded: "It is shameful for you to forget a case that involves a whole nation thrown into the political arena and suffering under the burden of politicians. Justice must be the foundation of governance, and the law must apply to everyone, or disgrace will remain the master of the situation, O Chief Prosecutor and O Investigating Judge Bitar. You are today concerned with a case that is as large as a nation and are accountable before God and the victims and martyrs. Be faithful and strong and do not forget your oath."
