According to reports by Al-Modon, Beirut Port blast investigator Judge Tarek Bitar is expected to travel to Bulgaria in the coming days to question Igor Grechushkin, the owner of Rhosus, the ship that transported the ammonium nitrate and exploded at the port in one of the world's largest non-nuclear explosions.
Bulgarian authorities will keep Grechushkin in detention for seven more days, giving Bitar a limited window to travel and conduct the interrogation. The Lebanese judiciary is finalizing security arrangements for the trip, with the possibility that another judge may accompany Bitar.
The trip follows Bulgaria’s approval of Bitar’s request to conduct the interrogation on its territory, coinciding with the lifting of a travel ban that had previously prevented the judge from leaving Lebanon. Acting Public Prosecutor at the Court of Cassation Jamal Hajjar removed the ban on Thursday, reversing an earlier decision by former prosecutor Ghassan Oueidat amid tensions between the two.
Reportedly, the move came after Bulgaria formally rejected Lebanon’s request to extradite Grechushkin, citing insufficient guarantees that he would not face the death penalty. Lebanese authorities had assured Sofia that capital punishment, unused in Lebanon for more than two decades, would not be applied, stressing the necessity of questioning Grechushkin for additional details related to the 2020 blast.
Judicial sources noted that Bulgaria’s decision was expected. Before formally rejecting the extradition request, the Sofia court had already signaled its willingness to receive Bitar for an on-site interrogation, though no date had been set.
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