Today Friday (September 11, 2020), firefighters and a Lebanese army helicopter put out the last flames of a massive fire that broke out in the port of Beirut on Thursday, almost a month after the massive explosion that destroyed the port and its surroundings. .
The fire broke out around 1:30 p.m. (10:30 GMT) on Thursday in a warehouse in the port, where the International Committee of the Red Cross stored aid containing thousands of food packages and half a million liters of oil for necessities. from home, as well as automobile tires. Since its outbreak, civil defense teams and the fire brigade rushed to the scene, joined a Lebanese army helicopter and worked to extinguish the fire, the fire of which spread to other warehouses where imported materials are stored.
This fire quickly reminded the Lebanese of the day of the terrible Beirut port explosion on August 4, which killed more than 190 people and injured more than 6,500, in addition to displacing some 300,000 people from their homes. Many rushed to close their home windows, fearing another explosion would knock down the glass again, and others exchanged messages warning to stay away from windows, while many homes and shops still basically lack their windows and doors that were broken by the explosion.
The Lebanese Civil Defense announced in a statement on Friday morning that its members had been expelled “with the support of a helicopter belonging to the Lebanese army and the Beirut Fire Brigade, from 1:25 p.m. on Thursday to 8:25 a.m. Friday Friday, “a fire broke out inside one of the huge warehouses in the port of Beirut. Civil defense personnel are working to cool the site to prevent a recurrence of the fire.
The International Committee of the Red Cross announced that “part of the ICRC’s food package stocks caught fire. With the debris and the danger involved, it is not possible to determine the extent of the losses.” According to the ICRC, the aid includes “sunflower oil, olive oil, sugar, salt, tea, margarine, pasta, tomato paste, bulgur, chickpeas, lentils and beans.”
The ICRC had transported much of what it was able to salvage from its arsenals in the port after the explosion. “There is no doubt that the explosion and the fire will have an impact on the humanitarian aid provided by the ICRC, whether in Lebanon or Syria,” he said on Friday.
For long hours on Thursday, a black cloud covered the Beirut sky, and many neighborhoods were dotted with black pieces of merchandise and burning tires. The reasons for the outbreak of the fire are not yet clear. However, the interim Minister of Public Works and Transport, Michel Najjar, spoke on Thursday of “initial information” indicating that “one of them was carrying out a repair workshop, using a (welding tool), which caused a spark and the fire broke out. “
The logistics company “BCC” responsible for the warehouse has denied “any responsibility” for the fire.
SS / AS (AFP, Reuters)
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
2005: Hariri is assassinated and Hezbollah enters the government
Former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri died on February 14, 2005, when a massive bomb exploded as his caravan passed through Beirut, killing another 21 people. This was followed by a series of massive demonstrations and international pressure that forced Syria to withdraw its forces from Lebanon. Damascus’s Shiite allies in Lebanon organized a series of demonstrations in support of Syria. And Hezbollah gained representation in the Lebanese government for the first time.
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
2006: Hezbollah provokes war with Israel
In July 2006, Hezbollah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers and killed others, sparking a five-week war in which at least 1,200 people died in Lebanon and 158 Israelis. Tensions rose over Hezbollah’s powerful arsenal after the war. And in November, Hezbollah and its allies withdrew from the Western-backed government led by Fouad Siniora.
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
2007: Siniora’s government is under pressure
Hezbollah and its allies continued a sit-in against the Siniora government that lasted for about a year. Their stated demands were to have the right to veto government decisions. In May 2007, clashes began between the Lebanese army and Sunni militants affiliated with Fatah al-Islam inside the Palestinian Nahr al-Bared camp in northern Lebanon, forcing thousands of Palestinian refugees to flee from it. Lebanese forces took full control of the camp in September.
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
2011: the fall of the Saad Hariri government
Saad Hariri’s first government was toppled in January 2011, after Hezbollah and its allies withdrew due to a dispute over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. The court subsequently indicted four Hezbollah leaders in connection with the murder of Rafik Hariri. Hezbollah denied any role in the Hariri assassination. (The photo here is of Hassan Nasrallah and Saad Hariri, dating from 2009).
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
2012: Hezbollah steps in to support Bashar al-Assad
Hezbollah fighters were secretly deployed inside Syria at first to support Syrian government forces in the face of a peaceful uprising against President Bashar al-Assad in mid-March 2011. Since 2012, the party has played an important role in the repression of this uprising, which has been in force for more than nine years.
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
2015: “You suck”
A garbage crisis erupted when authorities closed the main landfill near Beirut without providing an alternative, prompting people to go out in mass protests in August 2015 after hills of garbage piled up on the streets with the motto “You stink”. This crisis seemed to be a clear sign of the inability of the sectarian quota system to meet basic needs such as electricity and water.
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
2017: Saad Hariri is in the hands of Saudi Arabia
In November 2017, Saad Hariri’s relationship with Saudi Arabia drastically deteriorated, angered by Hezbollah’s growing influence in Lebanon. It was later widely reported that Riyadh forced Hariri to resign and retained him within the kingdom. Saudi Arabia and Hariri denied that this happened, but French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed Hariri’s detention in Saudi Arabia.
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
2019: Protests push Hariri to resign
With stagnant economic growth and a decrease in capital flows; The government has faced pressure to curb the huge budget deficit. Thousands of people protested, accusing leaders of corruption and mismanagement of the economy after they failed to overcome the economic crisis. On October 18, the government retracted some of its proposals to resolve the crisis, but the protests continued. On October 29, Hariri resigned, despite opposition from Hezbollah.
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
2019/2020: Protests continue and the Diab government is formed
Saad Hariri’s resignation and the formation of a new government by Hassan Diab, which is supported by Hezbollah, did not quell the anger of the Lebanese street. Popular protests continued this year and protesters continued to organize demonstrations to reject corruption and demand the departure of the entire political class. In addition, the living conditions and high prices in Lebanon exacerbated the crisis, so the Lebanese continued to take to the streets and remember their demands.
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
Beirut port explosion shakes Diab government
After the terrible explosion that shook Beirut and exacerbated the country’s economic crisis; The anger of the Lebanese has erupted against families and ruling elites accused of corruption and against the government of Hassan Diab, which was forced to resign under the pressure of protests on August 10, 2020. In a speech to the Lebanese From the government palace, Diab said that what he described as “the system of corruption is greater than the state and us.” We cannot get rid of it, and one of the examples of corruption is the explosion in Beirut. “
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
Sentence in the Hariri murder case
After fifteen years during which the Lebanese waited for the reality of the issue that changed the face of Lebanon and led to the departure of Syrian forces from it after 30 years of security and political tutelage, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon announced (18 of August 2020) that there is no evidence of the involvement of the Syrian regime or the Hezbollah leadership. Directly on the Hariri murder. However, the sentence indicated at the same time that a member of Hezbollah was involved in the murder.
-
The Hariri Assassination: A Case That Changed Lebanon In The Last 15 Years
Lebanon is at a crossroads
The ruling comes at a time when new divisions are emerging over demands for an international investigation and political responsibility for the port explosion, which resulted from the unsafe storage of large amounts of ammonium nitrate. The Hariri ruling may complicate the already volatile situation following the port explosion and the resignation of the government supported by Hezbollah and its allies. In the opinion of the Lebanese, including the victims who have been awaiting justice for 15 years, the verdict “is not enough.” Prepared by: Iman Molouk
Author: Iman Molouk
