Relatives of the more than 200 who died in the tragedy demonstrate in the capital to demand truth and demand an international investigation due to the inaction of the political class
Lebanon commemorated this Thursday the second anniversary of the explosion that destroyed important areas of Beirut and left more than 200 dead and thousands injured. Relatives of the victims went out in three separate marches towards the port of the capital, epicenter of the tragedy, to once again demand truth and justice. “There is no justice under the rule of the militias and the mafias”, could be read in one of the banners that the protesters raised, in reference to the ruling class.
The investigation, not in vain, continues to stall amid political interference and no state authority has yet been held responsible for the catastrophe, which caused the devastation that wars and natural phenomena usually cause due to the poor storage of ammonium nitrate in the port of Beirut. For this reason, relatives and friends of the victims called for an international investigation on Thursday, given the inaction of the Lebanese authorities.
After a part of the seriously damaged grain silos collapsed on Sunday and served as sad symbols of what had happened, another four towers collapsed at the very moment when the protesters were going to the place to remember the disaster of 4 August 2020. “I see the same scene, almost from the same place, two years later,” Lama Hachem, 30, told AFP in the center of the capital while observing a cloud of dust emanating from the port. “It is shocking that this is being repeated in front of us today,” he added, holding back tears.
UN petition
Echoing the calls of NGOs, experts and loved ones of the victims, the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, stressed that “an impartial, thorough and transparent investigation into the explosion” is necessary. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and other organizations insisted, for their part, on their appeal to the United Nations to send a verification mission.
The Lebanese population, which is facing as best it can the worst economic crisis in the country’s history, marked by blackouts and uncontrolled inflation, has increased its discomfort in recent months due to the blocking of investigations and the delays in the withdrawal of immunity from the former ministers and parliamentarians whom the judge has called to testify in the framework of the investigations, including former Prime Minister Hasan Diab, who resigned after the explosions.
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