BEIRUT: The cost of damage following the catastrophic explosion in Beirut is estimated to be more than $15 billion, President Michel Aoun said Wednesday.

Preliminary estimates of the losses of the port bombing exceeded $15 billion, the president said in a series of tweets.

Aoun also said that Lebanon is in the process of carrying out the necessary reforms and the fight against corruption and criminal investigation, in a meeting with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas.

A judicial official told AFP Wednesday that a Lebanese prosecutor would question several ministers and former ministers over last week's deadly chemical blast.

A devastating blast tore through Lebanons capital last week, leaving 171 dead and around 6,000 injured, in addition to turning Beirut into a disaster zone. According to initial reports, the blast was a result of the ignition of around 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate, stored at Beirut Port in warehouse 12 for around six years. The explosion is widely seen as a direct result of authorities corruption and negligence.

Aoun told reporters Friday that the investigations to determine the cause and those responsible for the Beirut blast would not spare any official from prosecution.

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