The awaited report of the French investigation team that operated in Beirut in the aftermath of the August 4 explosion is expected to reach Lebanon in the next few days.
As of yet, however, the French investigation into the cause of the blast has not reached a conclusion, a senior Lebanese judicial source told Al-Jazeera.
A French judge investigating the explosion disclosed the preliminary information to Judicial Investigator Judge Fadi Sawwan in a phone call on Tuesday, as per the source.
The French findings were recently said to be more comprehensive than the ones recently delivered to the Lebanese judiciary in a report by the FBI, which had also been investigating the blast.
The FBI’s findings were inconclusive concerning what caused the explosion.
It’s noteworthy that the French judge who spoke with Sawwan told him that he had not been officially handed a report by the technical and security experts working on the investigation, but had reviewed some of the information it is set to contain.
“He stated clearly that the experts have not determined conclusively whether the explosion was the result of an intentional security operation or whether it was the result of negligence in storing the ammonium nitrate and shortcomings that led to the devastating explosion,” the source said.
As the less-capable local investigation continues, Judge Sawwan has received hundreds of lawsuits filed by blast victims through the Beirut Bar Association, with hundreds more expected to follow in another wave.
