'Child abuse' case rocks Lebanon with grandfather questioned

The grandfather of a young girl in northern Lebanon who died this month after being allegedly sexually assaulted is being questioned by police, according to local media.

The six-year-old girl's grandfather was questioned at the Ras Beirut police station in Beirut before being referred to the investigating judge, local media said.

No further details were provided, and nobody has been charged yet in the case.

It comes after the girl's mother and uncle were detained as police investigated the death that has shaken Lebanese society to its core.

The six-year-old was reportedly staying at her maternal grandparents' house in the Minieh district after her parents had divorced.

Her mother reportedly took her to the hospital for a check-up after her temperature began to rise before returning home, despite the repeated request by the doctor to keep her in the hospital.

She was found dead at her grandparents' house soon after.  

A forensic doctor's report indicated bruises on the child's face and swelling of her lips and confirmed that she had been sexually assaulted.

Her father's family had filed a lawsuit against her mother's family. 

The case has caused uproar in Lebanon, a country suffering from a deep political and economic crisis since 2019.