Massive explosion rocks Beirut ahead of Hariri Verdict.

[Lieutenant]

it hints more being an inside job, but without proof it's an accident.

I am not ruling that out either.

 

[BATMAN]

It seems a Hezbollah depot was targeted

Hizbulla keeping volatile explosives in and around city, suggest they are simply modern day barbarians and are equally responsible, in case it was an accident than they are fully responsible.

 

[Falcon29]

Seems like it was an accident but whoever is in charge of port has explaining to do for keeping all those chemical containers stored in one area.

Tragic and sad day for Lebanese people. RIP to victims.

 

[space cadet]

Lebanon's Prime Minister Hassan Diab has now said that 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate, which was confiscated six years ago and had been left in an unsecured warehouse ever since was responsible for the secondary explosion that has caused untold destruction. He has vowed to punish whoever is responsible for creating this situation, which was clearly a massive accident waiting to happen.

 

[Path-Finder]

Iran with history of smuggling weapons around the region, constructing mafias and militias in countries, wherever it's followers live. Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, are some examples.... so what are your reasons for not doubting Iran?

so if I don't doubt iran then will that make me an irani agent? why aren't you doubting the ijrahelli's?

 

[Path-Finder]

It seems a Hezbollah depot was targeted

I heard that netanyahu in 2018 hinted at this location using a map and now it has been hit! is it true?

 

[Falcon29]

Iranian propagandists are already hard at work, on Arabic forums they are suggesting this is an Israeli/US attack. In order to imply US/Israel are targeting Hezbollah and Hezbollah is standing up against them, to gather more popular support for Iran in region. While on English forums like PDF they make in fun of those who suggest it is an Israeli attack and trying hard to remind Lebanese people that Iran was the first to send fuel and other medical supplies to Lebanon. They have to keep emphasizing first since they can't help themselves and desperately trying to take more control over Lebanon. And who knows where they get these 'first' claims from or why it would even matter.

Iran is very desperate to increase its soft and hard power in region and Arabs need to revise their strategy against Iran. Now is not the time to live in comfort and hope for the better.

 

[Falcon29]

so if I don't doubt iran then will that make me an irani agent? why aren't you doubting the ijrahelli's?

Israeli's are our enemies like the Iranians. We need to counter both of them. They are both narcissistic psychopaths who use violence and propaganda to get their way in the region. Region will only improve when these two actors are countered. Anyone who ignore this reality is either sympathetic to one of them or want to live in comfort and is delusional about the threats facing him.

 

[BATMAN]

so if I don't doubt iran then will that make me an irani agent? why aren't you doubting the ijrahelli's?

You are doubting based on your wish. I'm doubting based on the facts, which you are ignoring or may be you are really unaware of Iranian history of smuggling of arms and explosives around the region and hiring militias from the brain washed populace in the region and than using them to kill Muslims, and other crimes.
Statistically Iran and it's loyalists have killed more Muslims in region than Israel.
Having said that, it may very well be Israel who has engineered the whole explosion, but the reasons to doubt Iran are far far more strong... but you are welcome to give your reasons. I'm all ears.

 

[Falcon29]

 

[Path-Finder]

You are doubting based on your wish. I'm doubting based on the facts, which you are ignoring or may be you are really unaware of Iranian history of smuggling of arms and explosives around the region and hiring militias from the brain washed populace in the region and than using them to kill Muslims, and other crimes.
Statistically Iran and it's loyalists have killed more Muslims in region than Israel.
Having said that, it may very well be Israel who has engineered the whole explosion, but the reasons to doubt Iran are far far more strong... but you are welcome to give your reasons. I'm all ears.

You are talking as though you were there and saw everything! I didn't see anything and all I have to go by is what is reported. But when you start labelling and show your personnel like/dislike then your views are biased!!

 

[space cadet]

So many things to argue about, so little time..

 

[Falcon29]

The people of this region need to confront the Iranian's and the Israeli's or face continued genocide and cultural appropriation.

 

[BATMAN]

You are talking as though you were there and saw everything! I didn't see anything and all I have to go by is what is reported. But when you start labelling and show your personnel like/dislike then your views are biased!!

So... in other words you got nothing to explain, why are you ignoring open facts and statistics, which doubt Iran more than any other state.
My opinion is based on on daily news, which you are ignoring, only makes your opinion biased not mine.

All the regional states have their security agencies, who regularly catch Iranian boats carrying weapons, while Lebanon state it self is at war with Iran and it's militias.

At least, no witness is required to make a claim that explosives were private property, and only Iranian puppies run states within states, in all regional countries, including Pakistan. Hope you know who was Kulbhoshan Yadeve and from where he use to operate and what were his objectives.

If any thing is proven against Israel than all region would be against Israel so they can't afford risk of any such act, only Iran can take such risks because they have may loyalists around the region to mislead and protect Iranian interests.

 

[space cadet]

Negligence probed in deadly Beirut blast amid public anger

BEIRUT (AP) — Investigators probing the deadly blast that ripped across Beirut focused Wednesday on possible negligence in the storage of tons of a highly explosive fertilizer in a waterfront warehouse, while the government ordered the house arrest of several port officials.

apnews.com

Negligence suspected in Beirut blast involving chemicals
By BASSEM MROUE and ZEINA KARAMtoday

BEIRUT (AP) — Investigators began searching through the wreckage of Beirut’s port Wednesday for clues to the cause of the massive explosion that ripped across the Lebanese capital, and the government ordered port officials put under house arrest amid speculation that negligence was to blame.

The investigation is focusing on how 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate, a highly explosive chemical used in fertilizers, came to be stored at the facility for six years, and why nothing was done about it.

International aid flights began to arrive as Lebanon’s leaders struggled to deal with the shocking aftermath of Tuesday’s blast, crippled by an economic crisis and facing a public that blames chronic mismanagement and corruption among the ruling elite for the disaster.

The explosion at the port killed at least 135 people and wounded about 5,000, Health Minister Hamad Hassan said. Hospitals were overwhelmed — one that was damaged in the blast had to evacuate all its patients to a nearby field for treatment. Buildings were damaged for miles around the city, and Beirut’s governor said Wednesday that hundreds of thousands might not be able to return to their homes for two or three months.

It was the worst, most destructive single explosion to strike Lebanon in a history filled with destruction, in a 1975-1990 civil war, conflicts with Israel and periodic terror attacks.

A senior U.S. Defense Department official and member of the U.S. intelligence community said there were no indications the massive explosion that erupted on Tuesday evening in Lebanon’s capital was the result of an attack by either a nation state or proxy forces.

Both individuals spoke to The Associated Press under condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss intelligence briefings publicly. Both officials told the AP that at the moment, the explosion seems to have been caused by improper storage of explosives.

Fueling speculation that negligence was to blame for the accident, an official letter circulating online showed the head of the customs department had warned repeatedly over the years that the huge stockpile of ammonium nitrate stored in a hangar in the port was a danger, and asked judicial officials for a ruling on a way to remove it.

Ammonium nitrate is a component of fertilizer that is potentially explosive. The 2,750-ton cargo had been stored at the port since it was confiscated from a ship in 2013, and on Tuesday it is believed to have detonated after a fire broke out nearby.

The 2017 letter from the custom’s chief to a judge could not be immediately confirmed, but state prosecutor Ghassan Oueidat ordered security agencies to start an immediate investigation into all letters related to the materials stored at the port as well as lists of people in charge of maintenance, storage and protection of the hangar.

In the letter, the customs chief warns of the “dangers if the materials remain where they are, affecting the safety of (port) employees” and asked the judge for guidance on what to do with it. He said five similar letters were sent in 2014, 2015 and 2016. The letter proposes the material be exported or sold to a Lebanese explosives company. It is not known if there was ever a response.


President Michael Aoun vowed before a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday that the investigation would be transparent and that those responsible will be punished.

“There are no words to describe the catastrophe that hit Beirut last night,” he said.

After the meeting, the Cabinet ordered an unspecified number of Beirut port officials put under house arrest pending the investigation and declared a two-week state of emergency, effectively giving the military full powers during this time.

The government also said public schools and some hotels will be opened for the homeless and promised unspecified compensation for the victims.

With the Port of Beirut destroyed, the government said imports and exports will be secured through other ports in the country, mostly in the northern city of Tripoli and the southern port city of Tyre.

There were signs that public anger went beyond port officials to the country’s long-entrenched ruling class. Political factions have divvied up control of Lebanon’s public institutions, including the port, using them to benefit their supporters, with little actual development. That has translated into crumbling infrastructure, power outages and poor services.

“May the Virgin Mary destroy them and their families,” Joseph Qiyameh, a 79-year-old grocery store owner, said of the political leadership. The blast damaged his store, injuring his arm, and his wife — at home next door — was hospitalized with injuries. He doesn’t have the money to fix his business, with his savings locked up in banks by capital controls imposed during the crisis.

A small protest broke out after former Prime Minister Saad Hariri made a public appearance Wednesday, with people chanting slogans against politicians. Fistfights broke out between Hariri’s supporters and protesters. Hariri resigned in October amid nationwide protests.

Full coverage of the explosion: Lebanon
Residents of Beirut confronted a scene of utter devastation Wednesday. Smoke still rose from the port. The blast knocked out a crater some 200 meters (yards) across that filled with seawater — it was as if the sea had taken a bite out of the port, swallowing buildings with it. Much of downtown was littered with damaged vehicles and debris.

Lebanon was already on the brink of collapse amid a severe economic crisis. Many have lost their jobs and seen their savings evaporate because of a currency crisis. Food security is a worry, since Lebanon imports nearly all its vital goods and its main port is devastated. The government is strapped for cash.

Drone footage shot Wednesday by The Associated Press showed the blast tore open the silo building, dumping its contents into the debris and earth thrown up by the blast. Estimates suggest some 85% of the country’s grain was stored at the now-wrecked silos.

Economy and Trade Minister Raoul Nehme said all the wheat stored there was contaminated and unusable. But he insisted Lebanon had enough wheat for its immediate needs and would import more, according to the state news agency.

In the Netherlands, a U.N.-backed tribunal postponed delivery of judgments in the trial of four members of the militant group Hezbollah charged with involvement in the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri.

The verdicts were moved from Friday to Aug. 18 out of respect for the victims of the blast, the court said.

Emergency aid was starting to filter in. Two planeloads of French rescue workers and aid headed to Beirut and French President Emmanuel Macron was to arrive Thursday to offer support. Lebanon is a former French protectorate and the countries retain close political and economic ties.

Several jets from Greece, Kuwait, Qatar and elsewhere carrying medical equipment and supplies arrived at Beirut’s international airport. Turkey was sending search and rescue teams, humanitarian aid, medical equipment and a field hospital, its Foreign Ministry said. The EU planned to send firefighters with vehicles, sniffer dogs and equipment designed to find people trapped in urban areas.

___

Associated Press writers Sarah El Deeb, Hassan Ammar in Beirut, Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Joseph Krauss in Jerusalem contributed to this report.