BEIRUT: Facing an economic meltdown and other crises, Lebanon’s president on Wednesday asked for the world’s help to rebuild the capital’s main port and neighborhoods that were blown away in last month’s catastrophic explosion.
President Michel Aoun made the plea in a prerecorded speech to the UN General Assembly’s virtual summit, telling world leaders that Lebanon’s many challenges are posing an unprecedented threat to its very existence.
Most urgently, the country needs the international community’s support to rebuild its economy and its destroyed port. Aoun suggested breaking up the damaged parts of the city into separate areas and so that countries that wish to help can each commit to rebuilding one.
“Beirut today is trying to rise from its rubble, and it is with the solidarity of all the Lebanese and your support that it will heal its wounds and rise as it has previously risen repeatedly throughout history,” Aoun said. “There is a great need for the international community to support the reconstruction of destroyed neighborhoods and facilities.”
The massive Aug. 4 explosion happened when about 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrates — which had been rotting in a port warehouse for more than six years — ignited. Nearly 200 people were killed, 6,500 injured and a quarter of a million people were left with homes that were not fit to live in.
The cause of the blaze that ignited the chemicals still isn’t known, but the explosion is widely seen as the culmination of decades of corruption and mismanagement by Lebanon’s ruling class.
It came on top of an unprecedented economic crisis which has seen the local currency lose up to 80 percent of its value and decimated people’s savings, feeding despair among a population that has long ago given up on its leaders. Poverty and unemployment are soaring, made worse by the coronavirus pandemic.
A local investigation into the blast is underway, but no one has been held accountable so far.
Aroun said Lebanon had requested technical assistance from certain countries, particularly soil samples and satellite images from the moment of the explosion.
“Teams from several countries came for technical assistance and to carry out the necessary research and we are still waiting for their information... as well as the satellite images to clear the ambiguity in this part of the investigation,” he added.
Earlier Wednesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for swift formation of a government to be followed by tangible steps to implement economic, social and political reforms.
Lebanon’s government resigned under pressure in the wake of the port explosion, and Prime Minister-designate Mustapha Adib has been unable to form a new government amid a political impasse over which faction gets to have the Finance Ministry, as well as other disputes.
Guterres said the disastrous port explosion “must be a wake-up call.”
“Without such action, the country’s ability to recover and rebuild will be jeopardized, adding to the turmoil and hardship of the Lebanese people,” Guterres added.
Guterres made his remarks during a meeting of the International Support Group for Lebanon held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meetings.
Lebanon's Aoun asks world’s help ‘trying to rise from its rubble’ at UN General Assembly meeting
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Lebanon's Aoun asks world’s help ‘trying to rise from its rubble’ at UN General Assembly meeting
- Aoun said Lebanon is facing multiple crises that pose an unprecedented threat to the country’s existence
- An explosion at Beirut port devastated large parts of the capital, killed almost 200 people
Syrian president, Lebanon’s grand mufti hold ‘frank’ talks in Damascus
- Ahmad Al-Sharaa, Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian discuss nations’ shared aspirations
- ‘Syrians will not be defeated by terrorism,’ Derian says
BEIRUT: Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa and Lebanon’s Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian had an hour-long meeting at the People’s Palace in Damascus on Saturday.
Derian’s visit was the first by a Lebanese Sunni religious leader to Syria in more than 20 years, signaling a thaw in relations between the two nations that had been strained since the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and the start of the Syrian war in 2011.
Described as “frank,” the meeting addressed past estrangements and shared aspirations for renewal.
Derian, accompanied by a delegation of religious leaders, including Sheikh Mohammed Assaf, head of the Sunni Shariah courts, emphasized the importance of reconciliation and cooperation.
“After a long absence we come to reform the present and build a prosperous future,” he said, acknowledging the suffering of millions of Syrians and praising their resilience in the face of extremism and displacement.
He lauded the Syrian Arab Republic’s path toward free elections under Al-Sharaa — the first for more than 60 years — and expressed hope for its revival as a pillar of the Arab world and ability to overcome challenges like the recent Damascus church bombing, which he cited as evidence of ongoing conspiracies.
“Syrians will not be defeated by terrorism,” he said, praising Al-Sharaa’s navigation of a “difficult and arduous” road.
Derian underscored a renewed Lebanese-Syrian partnership founded on mutual support and Arab unity, and highlighted the promise of Lebanon’s own trajectory under a new government committed to the Taif Agreement.
“The hopes of the Lebanese are pinned on what was contained in the ministerial statement and the presidential oath, which are the beginning of the road to rebuilding a strong and just state, striving to serve all the Lebanese,” he said.
“Lebanon’s rise can only be achieved through the efforts of its best and loyal sons, both residents and expatriates, and the support of his Arab brothers and friends.”
He said there could be no salvation for Lebanon except through “sincere and constructive cooperation” with other Arab nations, which he described as the “guarantee of Lebanon’s security, stability, sovereignty, national unity and civilized Arabism which believes in the commitment to the Taif Agreement document … sponsored by Saudi Arabia.”
As a symbol of the strong ties between Lebanon and Syria, Derian presented Al-Sharaa with the Dar Al-Fatwa Gold Medal.
“We will stand with you in every calamity and joy,” he said.
The visit, coordinated with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, began with prayers at the Umayyad Mosque and a stop at Mount Qasioun.
In a separate meeting with Syrian Minister of Endowments Mohammed Abu Al-Khair, Derian emphasized Dar Al-Fatwa’s role in promoting moderate Islam, citizenship and coexistence amid regional challenges.
A Lebanese political observer framed the visit as a pivotal shift, not just religious but political, signaling Lebanese Sunnis’ readiness to forge a “new and normal” relationship with Syria’s emerging leadership.
The visit underscores Lebanon’s reaffirmation of its Arab identity and commitment to moderation, moving beyond decades of tension marked by assassinations and conflict.
Hezbollah, through its activists on social media, reacted cautiously to Derian’s visit to Damascus and his meeting with Al-Sharaa, with some accusing him of “stabbing the party in the back.”
What new research reveals about Gaza’s real death toll — and why it’s far higher than official figures
- Israel claims Gaza’s health ministry inflates civilian deaths, but a new survey suggests it may be undercounting them
- Independent researchers estimate 83,740 people have died in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023 — far more than official reports
LONDON: Since October 2023, Israel has been waging two parallel wars in Gaza: One, to destroy Hamas and rescue its hostages; the other, a propaganda campaign designed to discredit the tally of civilian fatalities issued by the Gaza Ministry of Health.
However, as new independent research suggests, far from exaggerating the number of deaths since Israel began its retaliation for the Oct. 7, 2023 attack, the Gaza Ministry of Health appears to have been significantly underestimating them.
According to the latest tally from the Ministry of Health, the total number of Palestinians killed since the war began is now approaching 55,000, with a further 126,000 injured.
A paper published by a team of researchers in the US, UK, Norway and Belgium, working in collaboration with the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research in Gaza, shows the death toll is likely far higher.
As of January 5 this year, it found the total number of violent deaths over the course of the conflict had already reached 75,200.
This figure, derived independently of the Ministry of Health, is based on an exhaustive household survey, which revealed another disturbing statistic about the war in Gaza.
In addition to the 75,200 violent deaths, the survey highlighted a further 8,540 non-violent deaths caused by indirect factors, including disease, hunger, and loss of access to medical treatment and medication.
That brings the total number of deaths resulting from the war in Gaza since October 2023 to 83,740.
“Our estimate for the number of violent deaths far exceeds the figures from the Ministry of Health,” said Michael Spagat, a professor of economics at Royal Holloway College, University of London, the lead author of the study and chairman of the board of trustees of the UK charity Every Casualty Counts.
“The implication of this is that the ministry has not been exaggerating the number of violent deaths.”
IN NUMBERS
• 75,200 Violent deaths resulting from the war in Gaza.
• 8,540 Non-violent deaths caused by indirect factors.
• 83,740 Total number of deaths since October 2023.
(Source: Gaza Mortality Survey)
The ministry has also been accused of falsifying the number of children killed in Israeli attacks. But “the demographics of the ministry’s figures seem to be about right,” said Spagat.
“The proportion of women, elderly, and children among the dead in its figures is consistent with what we found.”
The new research estimates that 56 percent of those killed between October 2023 and January this year — 42,200 of the total 75,200 victims — were either women, children, or those aged over 65.
Palestinian civil defense first responders and other people inspect the remains of a burnt-down classroom following an Israeli strike at the UNRWA's Osama bin Zaid school in the Saftawi district of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on June 27, 2025. (AFP)
More than half of these (22,800) were children under the age of 18, meaning that almost one in three of those killed in Gaza up to January this year was a child.
The Gaza Mortality Survey, which in line with standard academic procedure received ethical pre-approval from the University of London and obtained informed consent from each respondent, was conducted between Dec. 30, 2024, and Jan. 5, 2025.
Ten two-person teams from the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, tracked by GPS and real-time monitoring, conducted face-to-face questionnaire-based interviews, which were recorded on tablets and phones, and uploaded data instantly to a secure central server.
The survey teams visited a sample of 2,000 households, representative of prewar Gaza, and collected information about the “vital status” of 9,729 household members and their newborn children — including whether they were alive or dead and, if dead, how they had died.
The survey, said Spagat, “would have been impossible without the support of the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research.
“First of all, we would not have been let into Gaza, but our partner was already there. They have experienced survey researchers in Gaza, and they were the ones who conducted the interviews.
“Also crucial was that this organization has been tracking population movements since the war began. If we were doing a survey in Gaza under stable conditions, we would have a list of where people are, based on the last census. But there has been so much displacement the census-based list was of limited value.”
Instead, because it has been tracking population movements throughout the war, the PCPSR was able to identify 200 sample sites sheltering internally displaced people which reflected the distribution of pre-2023 populations, including in the now inaccessible areas of northern Gaza, Gaza City, and Rafah.
Palestinian civil defense first responders and other people inspect the remains of a burnt-down classroom following an Israeli strike at the UNRWA's Osama bin Zaid school in the Saftawi district of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on June 27, 2025. (AFP)
As with all such research, all the numbers come with a cautionary “confidence interval” — a margin of error that shows the possible range of figures, allowing for under- and overestimation. For the total number of violent deaths estimated by the survey, this gives a range of between 63,600 and 86,800.
“Even the lowest figure is a big number, and about 16,000 above the comparable Ministry of Health figure at the time of the survey,” said Spagat.
“We have tried to draw conclusions that we are quite confident won’t get overturned by further research, and one of our conclusions is that the Ministry of Health is not capturing all of the deaths in Gaza and that there is a substantial degree of undercount there.”
He added: “Our estimate for the number of children killed (22,800) is shockingly high, and well above the Ministry of Health figure.”
Taking into account the survey’s confidence interval, the number of child deaths could range from a low of 16,700 to as many as 28,800. And at either end of that scale, said Spagat, “that is an awful lot of children.”
It is, he said, “possible that the true number of total violent deaths is even below the bottom of our confidence interval, but it’s extremely unlikely to be so far below it that it would overturn our conclusion that the Ministry of Health is not capturing all of the deaths.”
He is anxious that the survey’s conclusions should in no way be seen as a criticism of the Ministry of Health, “which has had a lot on its plate.”
In fact, although the ministry’s tally is not fully comprehensive — it has, for instance, yet to compile or release figures for non-violent war-related deaths, which this survey has revealed for the first time — Spagat said its work should be highly commended.
Despite the constant criticism by Israel and its supporters, the work it is doing, under extreme conditions, “is exceptionally transparent,” he said.
“For each person they’re saying is dead, they’re listing a name and they’re listing a national ID number, a sex, and age.”
The first list of the dead was released by the ministry in October last year, in response to accusations that it was making up the numbers killed by Israel.
One factor that has been widely overlooked by critics of the ministry’s figures is the significance of the ID numbers.
“It’s the Israelis who maintain the population register for the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem, so at a minimum, they can take that list and they can check to verify that everyone listed on it is a real person,” said Spagat.
“They must have done some checking like this, and I’ve got to believe that if the Ministry of Health was just making up names Israel would have made that known.”
Ultimately, Spagat believes, the lists being compiled by Gaza’s Ministry of Health “will serve as a memorial for the people who are killed in a way that just recording a number can’t. By listing people individually, you are recording some semblance of who they were as human beings.”
The model for this, he said, was the Kosovo Memory Book, an exhaustive record of all those killed, missing, or disappeared in the fighting between 1998 and 2000, compiled by the Humanitarian Law Center in Kosovo.
This record, say its authors, “calls everyone to pause in front of it, to read each name and find out who these people were and how they died. It urges people to remember people.”
In time, it adds, “when the data on the fate of those who are still missing are finally obtained … the Kosovo Memory Book will have become the most reliable witness to our recent past.”
When peace finally comes to Gaza, said Spagat, “I hope there will be funding for research on this scale (based) on the really good foundations being laid by the Ministry of Health.”
UN calls for inquiry into Libyan activist’s death after being detained
- Abdel Monem Al-Marimi was a well-known government critic and took part in regular protests
- The activist died Friday night at a clinic in Tripoli from injuries sustained in a fall
TRIPOLI: The UN mission in Libya urged authorities on Saturday to open an investigation into the death of a prominent activist who prosecutors say threw himself down a stairwell after being detained.
Abdel Monem Al-Marimi was a well-known government critic and took part in regular protests demanding the removal of Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah.
In a statement, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said Marimi “was reportedly abducted by the Internal Security Agency in Surman (west of Tripoli) on 30 June and referred to the Attorney General’s office on 3 July,” adding he later died under “circumstances that are yet to be clarified.”
According to local media, the activist died Friday night at a clinic in Tripoli from injuries sustained in a fall at the attorney general’s office.
The office has said that Marimi was taken to hospital after jumping down a stairwell.
The government has so far offered no further comment on Marimi’s death.
UNSMIL called for a “transparent and independent investigation into his arbitrary detention, allegations of torture during his detention, and circumstances surrounding his death.”
The attorney general’s office said that before the incident in the stairwell, Marimi had been released from an interview, adding it was reviewing surveillance camera footage.
UNSMIL went on to condemn “threats, harassment, and arbitrary arrests targeting politically active Libyans,” and urged the authorities “to uphold free speech and end unlawful detentions.”
French writer Sansal jailed in Algeria still hopeful of pardon, supporters say
- France’s Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said earlier this week that he hoped Algeria would pardon the author, whose family has highlighted his treatment for prostate cancer
PARIS: French-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal will not appeal his five-year prison sentence to Algeria’s Supreme Court, sources close to the author said on Saturday, adding that they remain hopeful for a pardon.
The 80-year-old dual-national writer was sentenced to five years behind bars on March 27 on charges related to undermining Algeria’s territorial integrity over comments made to a French media outlet.
“According to our information, he will not appeal to the Supreme Court,” the president of the author’s support committee, Noelle Lenoir, told broadcaster France Inter on Saturday.
“Moreover, given the state of the justice system in Algeria ... he has no chance of having his offense reclassified on appeal,” the former European affairs minister said.
“This means that the sentence is final.”
Sources close to Sansal said that the writer had “given up his right to appeal.”
His French lawyer, Pierre Cornut-Gentille, declined to comment.
France’s Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said earlier this week that he hoped Algeria would pardon the author, whose family has highlighted his treatment for prostate cancer.
However, Sansal was not among the thousands pardoned by Algeria’s president on Friday, the eve of the country’s Independence Day.
“We believe he will be released. It is impossible for Algeria to take responsibility for his death in prison,” Lenoir said, adding she was “remaining hopeful.”
A prize-winning figure in North African modern francophone literature, Sansal is known for his criticism of Algerian authorities.
The case against him arose after he told the far-right outlet Frontieres that France had unjustly transferred Moroccan territory to Algeria during the colonial period, from 1830 to 1962 — a claim that Algeria views as a challenge to its sovereignty and aligns with longstanding Moroccan territorial assertions.
Sansal was detained in November 2024 upon arrival at Algiers airport.
On March 27, a court in Dar El Beida sentenced him to a five-year prison term and fined him 500,000 Algerian dinars ($3,730).
Appearing in court without legal counsel on June 24, Sansal stated that the case against him “makes no sense,” as “the Algerian constitution guarantees freedom of expression and conscience.”
The writer’s conviction has further strained tense France-Algeria relations, which have been complicated by issues such as migration and France’s recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, a disputed territory claimed by the Algeria-backed Polisario Front.
US deportees arrive in South Sudan, airport sources say
- An immigration official also said the deportees had arrived in the country
NAIROBI: An aircraft carrying US deportees arrived in South Sudan on Saturday, two officials working at Juba airport said, after eight migrants lost their last-ditch effort to halt their deportation by the Trump administration.
An airport staffer speaking on condition of anonymity told Reuters he had seen a document showing that the aircraft “arrived this morning at 6:00 am.”(0400 GMT)
An immigration official also said the deportees had arrived in the country but shared no further details, referring all questions to the National Security Service intelligence agency.
Earlier, a South Sudan government source said US officials had been at the airport awaiting the migrants’ arrival.
