SENIOR Lebanese officials knew of the risks posed by the highly explosive material stored for years at Beirut’s port and did nothing to protect the public against it, Human Rights Watch said today.

In a report on last year’s massive blast, the rights organisation said that those same officials are now trying to thwart the investigation.

The report comes as Lebanon marks one year since the horrific August 4 blast that ripped through Beirut, killing at least 214 people, injuring more than 6,000 and destroying or damaging thousands of homes and businesses.

The explosion of hundreds of tons of improperly stored ammonium nitrates was preceded by a huge fire at a port warehouse.

A year later, the investigation has yet to answer questions such as who ordered the shipment of the chemicals and why officials ignored repeated internal warnings of their danger.

In its 650-page report titled They Killed Us from the Inside, the New York-based group has published scores of documents and exchanges between Lebanese officials about the ammonium nitrates haphazardly stored for nearly six years at the port.

“The actions and omissions of Lebanese authorities created an unreasonable risk to life,” the report said, adding that under international human rights law, a state’s failure to act to prevent foreseeable risks to life is a violation of the right to life.

In addition, HRW said evidence strongly suggests some government officials foresaw the possible devastation from the nitrate’s presence and tacitly accepted the risk.

“Under domestic law, this could amount to the crime of homicide with probable intent, and/or unintentional homicide,” it added.

The report names senior leaders, including President Michel Aoun, then-prime minister Hassan Diab, a former Lebanese army chief, senior security officials and several ministers among others who were informed of risks posed by the nitrates in the middle of a densely populated commercial and residential area but failed to take the necessary actions to protect the public.

The Lebanese Women’s Rights Committee held a series of sit-in protests across the country today in protest at the government’s shambolic handling of the explosion and the Lebanese Communist Party has called on its supporters to join protests outside the house of representatives tomorrow.