Amid standoff in Beirut blast probe, US national released

BEIRUT — Scores of protesters, Thursday, scuffled with riot police in Beirut as they tried to break into the offices of Lebanon’s judiciary, after the country’s chief prosecutor filed charges against the judge investigating the massive 2020 port explosion and ordered the release of all suspects in the case.

The probe has stalled for years, as it threatens to rattle Lebanon’s ruling elite, which is rife with corruption and mismanagement, and has helped push the country into an unprecedented economic meltdown.

Among those released was a US citizen whose detention without trial had drawn threats of sanctions from American officials, and who promptly left Lebanon, circumventing a travel ban.