BEIRUT: Crisis-hit Lebanon marked two years Thursday since a massive port explosion ripped through Beirut, with victims’ relatives planning protest marches and the country bracing for silos to collapse at the blast site.
The dockside blast of haphazardly stored ammonium nitrate, one of history’s biggest non-nuclear explosions, killed more than 200 people, wounded thousands and decimated vast areas of the capital.
Yet an investigation into the cause has been stalled amid political interference and no state official has yet been held accountable over the August 4, 2020 tragedy, prompting rights defenders and some victims’ families to demand an international probe.
Several heavily damaged grain silos that became a grim symbol of the disaster collapsed last week, and more are dangerously close to coming down, with chunks already falling on Thursday, AFP correspondents reported.
French civil engineer Emmanuel Durand, who monitors the silos with sensors, told AFP that four more towers could come crumbling down “at any time.”
“I hope that seeing the silos fall will give people the will to fight for justice, to battle with us,” said Tatiana Hasrouty, who lost her father in the blast.
Politicians “are doing everything in their power to stop the investigation” into the explosion, she said.
The mega-blast was a nightmarish moment in the chaotic history of Lebanon, which is mired in its worst-ever economic crisis marked by blackouts, runaway inflation and widespread despair.
When protesters from three separate marches converge at the port, they will smell the smoke wafting from the silos where fermenting grain is smoldering in the blistering summer heat.
The enormous explosion two years ago was felt as far away as Israel and Cyprus and sowed the kind of devastation normally caused by wars and natural disasters.
It further scarred the crisis-tested population and accelerated a massive exodus that recalls the flight from the 1975-1990 civil war.
Lebanon’s ruling class, accused of misrule, graft and gross negligence, has however clung firmly to power even as the people endure shortages of fuel, medicines and clean water.
“This ruling class is killing us every day,” Hasrouty said. “If we did not die in the blast, we are dying of hunger, from a lack of basic human rights.”
Power cuts last up to 23 hours a day, streets are dark at night and traffic lights out of service, leaving some districts illuminated mainly by the silo fires.
Lara Khatchikian, 51, whose apartment was badly hit two years ago, has watched the blazes, calling the sight “a nightmare.”
“I have felt fear, we couldn’t sleep,” she said. “It takes superhuman strength to live when you are constantly reminded of the blast.”
The government in April ordered the silos’ demolition, but this has been suspended, partially because of objections from victims’ relatives who want them preserved as a memorial.
Meanwhile, the probe is also at risk of falling apart, as officials close to the powerful Hezbollah movement have curtailed the work of the lead investigator Tarek Bitar with a series of lawsuits.
A judicial official close to the investigation said judge Bitar’s work had been paused since December 23.
Hezbollah, which has repeatedly accused Bitar of bias, on Thursday condemned what it described as a two-year “intense political and media campaign, which contained false accusations” against it, and called for a “fair” investigation.
UN chief Antonio Guterres on Thursday reiterated his call for an “impartial, thorough and transparent investigation into the explosion.”
UN experts and groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch had earlier relaunched an appeal to the United Nations to send a fact-finding mission.
The rights groups jointly declared that “it is now, more than ever, clear that the domestic investigation cannot deliver justice.”
Aya Majzoub of HRW said that an international investigation “may be the only hope for the millions of Lebanese people... to get the answers they deserve.”
Two years after Beirut mega-blast, Lebanon hits new lows
https://arab.news/mq2t7
Two years after Beirut mega-blast, Lebanon hits new lows
- An investigation into the cause has been stalled amid political interference
- French civil engineer Emmanuel Durand, who monitors the silos with sensors, told AFP that four more towers could come crumbling down "at any time"
US working with regional partners to support ‘responsible transition’ in Syria: Official
- Acting undersecretary for political affairs addressed press briefing attended by Arab News
- John Bass would not answer questions regarding Israel’s military attacks against Syria
CHICAGO: Discussions to ensure a “responsible transition” in Syria to prevent a rise in terrorism, provide basic services to citizens and ensure good relations with regional nations are progressing, the US acting undersecretary for political affairs told a press briefing attended by Arab News on Friday.
Concluding two days of talks with Turkish officials in Ankara, John Bass said the Syria Working Group also addressed defining Syria’s borders and “strengthening internal security” to prevent a resurgence of Daesh and other “foreign terrorist organizations” in the country.
Bass was careful not to predict how US policy might change under Donald Trump, nor would he address questions regarding Israel’s military attacks against Syria.
“We’ve also discussed in depth a range of steps that the United States and other governments have taken to enable the interim authorities in Damascus to address the immediate needs of the Syrian people, including via support from other governments for things like salaries, payments for the civilian administration at the national level, for donations of power or energy, and for some of the other measures that are required to stabilize the Syrian government, to stabilize the economy, and to give the Syrian people hope that this transition will yield a better future for all of the citizens of the country,” Bass said.
“What we’re working through … is how we can affect a responsible transition … so that it contributes to strengthening national forces over time and building, rebuilding a military and a police service that responsibly fulfills its duties and obligations to the Syrian people, but to do that in a way that doesn’t create immediate risk,” he added.
“It’s a complicated process to help a national government, particularly one that’s an interim government that needs to do a lot of internal work with other parts of Syrian society to determine what that government will look like in the future.”
Bass said the US is concerned that events in Syria do not “pose a threat to any of Syria’s neighbors, to countries in the wider region or to countries further afield, whether that’s in Europe, the United States or elsewhere around the world.”
He added that “the long-running civil war in Syria and the long-standing presence of Daesh” in the country have created threats to neighboring nations.
“It’s in that spirit that we’ve been engaging … in discussions about how we can help work together to ensure that as this transition continues inside Syria that it doesn’t just produce a better, safer environment inside Syria for all Syrians, it also addresses the security concerns of Turkiye, of Iraq, of Jordan, and of Syria’s other neighbors,” he said.
The US “greatly” admires “the generosity of the Turkish government and the Turkish people in hosting over 3 million (Syrian) refugees for now well over a decade,” he added.
Bass said discussions were focused on ensuring that fighters of terrorist groups such as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) are forced to return to their nations of origin.
“We’re in agreement with the government of Turkiye and a number of other governments that Syria can’t be, shouldn’t be in the future a safe haven for foreign terrorist organizations or foreign terrorist fighters. And we believe that any foreign terrorist that’s present inside Syria should leave the country,” Bass said in addressing the PKK.
“Ideally, many of those people will be returning to their countries of origin, their countries of nationality, through a responsible process that involves those governments potentially to face justice for their actions.
“But they should no longer be present in Syria, contributing to instability in the country. And that includes any foreign terrorists who have taken advantage of the long-term instability in Syria to set up shop whether it’s in northeastern Syria, whether it’s in southwestern or southern or southeastern Syria.”
Asked how Trump administration policies might differ, Bass said: “I’m a senior official of the current United States government. I can’t speak for the next US administration, nor can I offer any insights at this time into how US policy might change under the next administration.”
He expressed confidence, however, that “colleagues in the US government” will continue to support Syria’s transition.
Bass also emphasized that the small US presence in Syria has one specific purpose, “to ensure that Daesh doesn’t again become a threat to the people of Syria, the people of Turkiye, the people of Iraq or Jordan, or any other country.”
Israeli military confirms hostage killed alongside father in Gaza
- Israeli forces continued on Friday to pound Gaza, with Palestinian medics saying at least 15 people had been killed
- The Israeli military has said it suspected Hamza and Youssef were killed in one of its strikes
JERUSALEM: Israel confirmed on Friday that the remains of a hostage found killed in Gaza were of Hamza Ziyadne, the son of deceased hostage Youssef Ziyadne, whose body was found beside him in an underground tunnel near the southern city of Rafah.
Israeli forces continued on Friday to pound Gaza, with Palestinian medics saying at least 15 people had been killed, including a journalist for Cairo-based Al-Ghad TV who had been covering an incident at Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.
There was no immediate comment on the latest fighting from Israeli’s military, which earlier announced it had concluded forensic tests to identify Hamza Ziyadne, an Israeli Bedouin taken hostage by Hamas-led fighters alongside his father and two of his siblings.
It said earlier this week that the body of Hamza’s father Youssef had been recovered close to those of armed guards from Islamist group Hamas or another Palestinian militant group and there were indications that Hamza may also have been killed.
There was no immediate comment from Hamas although the group’s armed wing told Qatar’s Al-Jazeera news network that most of the hostages in northern Gaza were now considered missing because of intense Israeli strikes there.
The left-leaning Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that the Israeli military has said it suspected Hamza and Youssef were killed in one of its strikes, given their bodies were found next to those of dead militants. A military spokesperson said this week that Youssef Ziyadne had not died recently.
The military declined to comment on the cause of the hostages’ deaths.
EFFORTS TO END FIGHTING
Mediators Qatar, the United States and Egypt are making new efforts to reach a deal to halt the fighting in Gaza and free the remaining hostages before President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20.
The Hostages and Missing Family Forum, which represents most of the families, renewed its call on the Israeli government to conclude a deal with Hamas and bring back the hostages, saying Youssef and Hamza Ziyadne could have been saved through an earlier agreement.
The negotiations have been at an impasse for a year over two key issues. Hamas has said it will only free its remaining hostages if Israel agrees to end the war and withdraw all its troops from Gaza. Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is dismantled and all hostages are free.
Israeli defense minister Israel Katz on Friday instructed the military to present a plan for the “total defeat” of Hamas in Gaza if it does not release the hostages before Trump’s inauguration. It was not clear how such a plan would differ from existing Israeli military plans.
“We must not be dragged into a war of attrition against Hamas in Gaza, while the hostages remain in the tunnels, putting their lives at risk and suffering severely,” he told senior commanders, according to a defense ministry statement.
Israel launched its assault on the Gaza Strip after Hamas fighters stormed across its borders in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Since then, more than 46,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials, with much of the enclave laid waste and most of its people — displaced multiple times — facing acute shortages of food and medicine due to Israel’s actions, humanitarian agencies say.
Arab, international support for Lebanon pours in as Aoun set to form government
- Bukhari expressed “Saudi Arabia’s satisfaction with Lebanon’s successful presidential election”
- Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides visited Beirut to congratulate Aoun, marking the first visit by a foreign head of state to Lebanon following the election
BEIRUT: Joseph Aoun’s first day as president of Lebanon was marked by strong Arab and international support.
Parliamentary consultations to name a new prime minister will take place next week.
Imran Riza, UN humanitarian coordinator in Lebanon, announced the allocation of $30 million from the Lebanon Humanitarian Fund to address urgent humanitarian needs caused by the recent escalation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.
Lebanon’s Dar Al-Fatwa relayed remarks from the Saudi ambassador to Lebanon, Walid Bukhari, during his meeting with Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian.
Bukhari expressed “Saudi Arabia’s satisfaction with Lebanon’s successful presidential election, achieved through Lebanese unity that inspires hope.”
He described the accomplishment as a significant step toward Lebanon’s renaissance, reconstruction, security, and stability, as well as the initiation of reforms and restoring Arab and international confidence.
Dar Al-Fatwa also reported that Bukhari admired “President Joseph Aoun’s inaugural speech, which was a reflection of his national responsibility.”
On Friday, Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides visited Beirut to congratulate Aoun, marking the first visit by a foreign head of state to Lebanon following the election.
Aoun also received a congratulatory message from Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, expressing “the Iranian government’s readiness to continue strengthening bilateral cooperation in all areas.”
Pezeshkian said he hoped the presidential elections would lead to political stability, economic growth, peace, and security for the people of Lebanon. He added that reinforcing stability and unity would thwart Israel’s ambitions in Lebanon’s territory.
Aoun’s initial meetings included a session with Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who, along with Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib, is set to visit Syria on Saturday. This marks the first official Lebanese visit to Damascus since the fall of Bashar Assad.
Aoun asked Mikati to “continue managing caretaker duties until a new government is formed.”
Mikati said after the meeting that during the two years and two months since the end of former President Michel Aoun’s term, his government held 60 Cabinet sessions and issued more than 1,211 decisions and more than 3,700 decrees.
“We managed to navigate this phase and maintain the continuity of the state, particularly through its backbone — the army — under the leadership of Gen. Joseph Aoun and through our cooperation with him.”
Mikati explained that the discussion with the president focused on “the existing challenges and the content of the inaugural address, in which Aoun outlined the directions for any new government to implement the speech’s content through the necessary constitutional steps.”
Mikati said: “We talked about the situation in the south and the necessity for a swift and full Israeli withdrawal, reestablishing stability in the south and halting Israeli violations.”
He said the next government must be able to reflect the direction outlined by the president. “We are embarking on a new phase that requires everyone’s cooperation to exert serious efforts to save the nation. The broad outlines set by the president are very important and the leadership of this country has the will to act. Many of these objectives can be achieved quickly through an active government.”
Regarding Aoun’s insistence in his speech on “the state having a monopoly on bearing weapons,” Mikati said: “Do we expect the president of the country to say that weapons are legal for everyone? Do we expect a new government to say that weapons are legal for all citizens? Today, we are entering a new phase that starts from southern Lebanon, specifically south of the Litani River, to withdraw arms and ensure that the state will be present across all Lebanese territory, with stability beginning from the south.”
Aoun’s inaugural address on Thursday was widely welcomed in Lebanon, and across the Arab and international states. Leaders of political parties and economic bodies expressed support for the speech and its implementation.
Sami Gemayel, head of the Lebanese Kataeb Party, said: “His address is unprecedented in the past three decades, as all presidents came during the Syrian guardianship or when Hezbollah controlled decisions and no president was allowed to speak about the interest of his country.”
Gemayel pledged to “defend the speech, which fully represents us, and to stand by the president to realize his national project.”
A few hours after the election of the president, Israeli reconnaissance planes resumed violations of Lebanese airspace, starting from the south and reaching Beirut and its southern suburb, extending to Hermel on the border with Syria.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces continued their incursions into southern Lebanon, destroying border villages.
Aita Al-Shaab was subjected to artillery shelling, with Israeli forces conducting explosions and intensive sweep operations inside the town.
Movements of Israeli forces’ vehicles were observed between Tallat Al-Hamames and the adjacent Metula settlement at the Khiam-Wazzani triangle.
Once again, Israeli tanks and infantry forces conducted incursions in the town of Taybeh and opened fire on the remaining houses.
On Friday, a Lebanese Army unit entered the town of Aitaroun in Bint Jbeil, accompanied by a bulldozer to clear a dirt barrier previously erected by the Israeli Army at the village entrance.
The Lebanese Army is awaiting a signal from a five-member committee, tasked with overseeing the implementation of the ceasefire resolution, to redeploy in positions at the Al-Qouzah-Debel-Aita Al-Shaab triangle following the Israeli withdrawal.
On Thursday Israel heavily bombed the border town of Aita Al-Shaab, causing tremors deep in southern regions.
Israel also carried out operations to detonate houses in Kafr Kila, Houla, and the vicinity of Wazzani, with the Israeli military claiming it had bombed “five large ammunition warehouses.”
Israeli forces still have 15 days left of the 60-day deadline to fully withdraw from the area following the incursion on Oct. 1.
On Friday, Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee renewed his warning to the residents of southern Lebanon via social media, advising them against “moving south to the line of villages from Mansouri in the west to Shebaa in the east until further notice. Anyone who moves south of this line is at risk.”
Civil defense personnel, in coordination with the army and UNIFIL, continue to search and survey the areas from which the Israeli army withdrew, looking for the bodies of Hezbollah fighters who were reportedly missing.
Stampede at central Damascus mosque kills four: health official
- Ghina, who was at the mosque to attend Friday prayers, said she saw “people carrying an elderly woman with blood dripping from her face“
- The Al-Watan newspaper said it happened during the distribution of free meals
DAMASCUS: A stampede at the landmark Umayyad Mosque in Syria’s capital on Friday killed four people, a Damascus health official told state media.
“Damascus Health Director Dr. Mohammed Akram Maatouq announced that the final toll from the unfortunate stampede that occurred today in the Great Umayyad Mosque and its surroundings is four dead and 16 injured,” a statement carried by state news agency SANA said.
Earlier, Damascus Governor Maher Marwan had told SANA that the deadly crush took place “during a civilian event at the mosque.”
A photographer who collaborates with AFP and was at the site of the stampede saw large crowds gathered near the mosque because free meals were being handed out.
Ghina, who was at the mosque to attend Friday prayers, said she saw “people carrying an elderly woman with blood dripping from her face,” adding that she appeared dead.
The Al-Watan newspaper said the stampede happened during the distribution of free meals by a social media personality.
A YouTuber called Chef Abu Omar, who has a restaurant in Istanbul, had earlier posted a video of preparations for the distribution of free meals at the Ummayyad Mosque.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani had visited the mosque in the morning.
Israel strikes Yemen Houthis, warns it will ‘hunt’ leaders
- “A short while ago... fighter jets struck military targets belonging to the Houthi terrorist regime,” the Israeli military said
- It said it also struck military infrastructure in the ports of Hodeida and Ras Issa
JERUSALEM: Israel struck Houthi targets in Yemen on Friday, including a power station and coastal ports, in response to missile and drone launches, and warned it would hunt down the group’s leaders.
“A short while ago... fighter jets struck military targets belonging to the Houthi terrorist regime on the western coast and inland Yemen,” the Israeli military said in a statement.
It said the strikes were carried out in retaliation for Houthi missile and drone launches into Israel.
The statement said the targets included “military infrastructure sites in the Hizaz power station, which serves as a central source of energy” for the Houthis.
It said it also struck military infrastructure in the ports of Hodeida and Ras Issa.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a statement after the strikes, said the Houthis were being punished for their repeated attacks on his country.
“As we promised, the Houthis are paying, and they will continue to pay, a heavy price for their aggression against us,” he said.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel would “hunt down the leaders of the Houthi terror organization.”
“The Hodeida port is paralyzed, and the Ras Issa port is on fire — there will be no immunity for anyone,” he said in a video statement.
The Houthis, who control Sanaa, have fired missiles and drones toward Israel since war broke out in Gaza in October 2023.
They describe the attacks as acts of solidarity with Gazans.
The Iran-backed rebels have also targeted ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, prompting retaliatory strikes by the United States and, on occasion, Britain.
Israel has also struck Houthi targets in Yemen, including in the capital.
Since the Gaza war began, the Houthis have launched about 40 surface-to-surface missiles toward Israel, most of which were intercepted, the Israeli army says.
The military has also reported the launch of about 320 drones, with more than 100 intercepted by Israeli air defenses.
