With anger and unspeakable pain, the Lebanese today celebrate the first anniversary of the murder explosion in the port of Beirut, from which 214 people lost their lives, while those responsible for the tragedy have not yet been found.
Today, France and the United Nations are holding another international conference to offer emergency humanitarian aid to the most vulnerable in a Lebanon plunged into the worst socio-economic crisis in its history.
The Chronicles
On August 4, 2020, shortly after 18:00 local time, its capital Lebanon was shocked by the explosion of hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate which was stored for years in a warehouse in the port of Beirut “without protection”, as the government itself admitted.
Shock, disaster, pain and rage: 214 dead, more than 6,500 injured and entire neighborhoods leveled.
The tragedy occurred in a country on the brink of economic collapse and ruled by an abandoned political class.
To pay their respects to the victims and demand justice, their families and activists are organizing marches this afternoon, candlelight vigils and religious ceremonies in front of the port or near the parliament building.
Among the victims were firefighters who were killed while trying to put out the fire in the port that preceded the explosion, or port workers who were crushed by the collapsed grain warehouses.
A year later, although some neighborhoods have been rebuilt largely thanks to NGOs and volunteers, as the state has done little or nothing, if the wounds have healed, an entire nation remains injured.
One in three families have children who are still showing signs of “psychological trauma”, according to Unicef. Among adults the percentage reaches one in two.
No perpetrators have been identified or prosecuted
And despite the magnitude of the tragedy that shocked the world public opinion, the local investigation has swamped and no one responsible has been identified or tried, aand justice has targeted former ministers and security officials.
The political class has been criticized for doing everything it can to torpedo the investigation and avoid persecution, with officials hiding behind their immunity.
Families of the victims demanding the waiver of this immunity gave an ultimatum to the rulers and threatened to “break the bones” of anyone who opposes their anger today.
“Ordinary and peaceful demonstrations are coming (…) Beware of our anger,” warned Ibrahim Hoteit, a spokesman for the families.
As far as NGOs are concerned, their conclusion is absolute. Authorities “shamefully obstructed the search for truth and justice for the victims,” Amnesty International said in a statement. “Many authorities (…) have shown criminal negligence,” the Human Rights Watch (HRW) criticized.
* The photo is a file
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