Lebanese authorities ‘criminally negligent’ over Beirut blast, Watchdog says

Some Lebanese officials knew about and tacitly accepted the lethal risks posed by ammonium nitrate stored at Beirut port before the fatal blast, the Human Rights Watch said. (AFP file photo)
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Updated 03 August 2021
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Lebanese authorities ‘criminally negligent’ over Beirut blast, Watchdog says

  • According to a report by Human Rights Watch, high-ranking officials were aware of the risk to life but failed to take any action to address it

DUBAI: High-ranking Lebanese officials “were, at a minimum, criminally negligent under Lebanese law in their handling” of the situation that resulted in the devastating explosion at Beirut’s port a year ago, according to a report published by Human Rights Watch (HRW).

The port and the area around it was destroyed and a large section of the city was damaged on Aug. 4 when 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate, which had been stored at the port for several years without proper safety precautions, ignited and exploded.

One of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history, it killed at least 218 people, injured more than 7,000 and left an estimated 300,000 homeless.

So far no high-ranking officials have been held accountable for the failures that led to the explosion, because of “systemic problems in Lebanon’s legal and political system,” HRW said.

For its report, the international rights watchdog studied hundreds of pages of official findings, documents and other evidence. This reveals that “the actions and omissions of Lebanese authorities created an unreasonable risk to life,” the organization concluded.

“In addition, evidence strongly suggests that some government officials foresaw the deaths that the ammonium nitrate’s presence in the port could result in and tacitly accepted the risk of the deaths occurring,” it added. “Under domestic law, this could amount to the crime of homicide with probable intent, and/or unintentional homicide.”

The report in particular accuses the Finance Ministry of failing to take action to dispose of the ammonium nitrate after it was informed about it. It also accuses the Lebanese army of failing to take any steps to secure or remove the material from the port, even though its nitrogen content meant that it was under army oversight.

Lebanese State Security, meanwhile, carried out an investigation and the results were detailed in a report, but it delayed relaying the information to the relevant authorities.

According to the HRW report, President Michel Aoun, the then-caretaker prime minister Hassan Diab, Director General of State Security Tony Saliba, and some former ministers all failed to act in a timely manner to deal with the threat.

Aoun’s office could not be reached for comment. Leila Hatoum, advisor to Diab on foreign media affairs, told Arab News that he “had done all within his power, during the short period of time from him being officially informed on July 22, 2020 of the State Security’s report, to address the issue of the ammonium nitrate stored at Beirut Port’s hangar 12.”

The Lebanese investigation into the blast, led by Judge Tarek Bitar, has stalled because politicians wanted for questioning are protected by parliamentary immunity.

Mass protests are planned in Lebanon on Wednesday to mark the first anniversary of the explosion. The families of its victims on Monday set a deadline of 30 hours for the authorities to strip officials of their immunity.

A spokesperson warned that the families are “done with … peaceful protests” and will take “more confrontational” action if their demands are ignored.


Pope Leo appeals for Gaza ceasefire, laments deaths of children

Updated 5 sec ago
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Pope Leo appeals for Gaza ceasefire, laments deaths of children

VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo appealed on Wednesday for a ceasefire in Gaza, and called on Israel and Hamas militants to “completely respect” international humanitarian law.
“In the Gaza Strip, the intense cries are reaching Heaven more and more from mothers and fathers who hold tightly to the bodies of their dead children,” the pontiff said during his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square.
“To those responsible, I renew my appeal: stop the fighting,” said the pope. “Liberate all the hostages. Completely respect humanitarian law.”
Leo, elected on May 8 to replace the late Pope Francis, also appealed for an end to the war in Ukraine.

Italy demands Israel stops strikes, blasts expulsions of Gazans

Updated 25 min 39 sec ago
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Italy demands Israel stops strikes, blasts expulsions of Gazans

  • Antonion Tajani: ‘The bombings must stop, humanitarian assistance must resume as soon as possible, respect for international humanitarian law must be restored’

ROME: Italy’s foreign minister on Wednesday again urged Israel to stop its strikes on Gaza, while warning that expelling Palestinians from the territory “is not and never will be an acceptable option.”
“The legitimate reaction of the Israeli government to a terrible and senseless terrorist act has unfortunately taken on absolutely tragic and unacceptable forms, that we ask Israel to stop immediately,” Antonion Tajani told parliament, referring also to Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
“The bombings must stop, humanitarian assistance must resume as soon as possible, respect for international humanitarian law must be restored,” he said.
“Hamas must immediately free all the hostages which are still today in its in hands, and who have the right to return to their homes.”
Tajani also condemned US President Donald Trump’s plan for US control of Gaza and the forced displacement of the Palestinians living there.
“I want to reiterate today in this chamber with the utmost clarity – the expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza is not and will never be an acceptable option,” Tajani said.
“This is why we wholeheartedly support the Arab plan led by Egypt for the recovery and reconstruction of the (Gaza) Strip, which is incompatible with any hypothesis of forced displacement.”


Israel strikes Yemen’s Sanaa airport for 2nd time in a month

Updated 49 min 33 sec ago
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Israel strikes Yemen’s Sanaa airport for 2nd time in a month

  • Israel last struck the airport in Sanaa on May 6

DEIR AL-BALAH: The Israeli military said Wednesday it struck Yemen’s Sanaa airport for the second time in a month targeting the Houthis.

The strike came after the Houthis have fired several missiles at Israel in recent days without causing casualties or damage.

There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage in Sanaa.

Israel last struck the airport in Sanaa on May 6, destroying the airport’s terminal and leaving its runway riddled with craters. Some flights to Sanaa resumed on May 17.


At least 47 wounded, mostly by gunfire, as Palestinians crowd aid hub in Gaza

Updated 28 May 2025
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At least 47 wounded, mostly by gunfire, as Palestinians crowd aid hub in Gaza

  • The UN and other humanitarian organizations have rejected the new system, saying it won’t be able to meet the needs of Gaza’s 2.3 million people

GENEVA: A UN official says 47 Palestinians were wounded, mostly by gunfire, when crowd overran Gaza aid hub.

Ajith Sunghay, head of the UN Human Rights Office for the Palestinian territories, told reporters in Geneva that it appeared Israeli army fire had caused most of the injuries.

On Tuesday, crowds of Palestinians overwhelmed a new aid distribution hub set up by an Israeli and US-backed foundation. The crowd broke through fences and an Associated Press journalist heard Israeli tank and gun fire, and saw a military helicopter firing flares.

The distribution hub outside Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah was opened the day before by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which has been slated by Israel to take over aid operations.

The UN and other humanitarian organizations have rejected the new system, saying it won’t be able to meet the needs of Gaza’s 2.3 million people and allows Israel to use food as a weapon to control the population. They have also warned of the risk of friction between Israeli troops and people seeking supplies.

Palestinians have become desperate for food after nearly three months of Israeli blockade pushed Gaza to the brink of famine.


Gaza rescuers say 16 killed in Israeli strikes Wednesday

Updated 28 May 2025
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Gaza rescuers say 16 killed in Israeli strikes Wednesday

  • Israel has stepped up its offensive in Gaza this month, aiming for ‘the defeat of Hamas’
  • At least 3,822 people had been killed in the territory since Israel ended a ceasefire on March 18

GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories: Gaza rescuers said sixteen people were killed Wednesday in Israeli strikes across the besieged Palestinian territory where Israel intensified its operations this month.

“Sixteen people have been killed as a result of Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip since dawn,” civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal said.

Among them, nine belonged to the family of photojournalist Osama Al-Arbeed and were killed in a strike on their home in Gaza’s north at 2:00 a.m., Bassal said.

He added that Arbeed was injured, noting that he is a videographer and editor at a local film production organization.

Another six members of the same family were killed in central Gaza in a strike that left 15 people wounded, “including children.”

One other person, a civilian per Bassal, was killed near the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis.

When contacted by AFP, the Israeli military declined to comment on the strikes, saying it could not do so without precise coordinates.

Israel has stepped up its offensive in Gaza this month, aiming for “the defeat of Hamas,” more than 18 months after the group’s October 2023 attack on Israel triggered the war.

Some 1,218 people were killed in that attack, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Militants also took 251 hostages, 57 of whom remain in Gaza, including 34 who the Israeli military says are dead.

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Monday that at least 3,822 people had been killed in the territory since Israel ended a ceasefire on March 18, taking the war’s overall toll to 53,977, mostly civilians.