By Natalie Weger
On August 4, a huge explosion rocked Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, and home to almost 2.5 million people. According to CNN News, the explosion killed at least 137 people, injured 5,000, and destroyed many homes and buildings throughout the city. The death toll and number of injuries is suspected to rise even higher as more people are pulled from the explosion.
According to BBC News, the explosion’s shockwave stretched at least five miles away from its starting point. It could be heard as far away as Cyprus, a country about 200km across the Mediterranean. Many people have lost their homes, been hospitalized and gone missing over the past few days.
Prime Minister Hassan Diab said the explosion was caused by 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate that had been unsafely stored in a Beirut port warehouse. According to The Guardian, the ammonium nitrate‒which is normally used for fertilizer and mining explosives‒had been neglected for years, ultimately starting the explosion. However, there is still no confirmed information about what initially ignited the explosion.
Associated Press claimed that the European Union activated its civil protection system to provide emergency workers and supplies for Beirut. Other countries, including Kuwait, Norway, and Australia, have sent help as well.
Although Lebanon has received help, it is still struggling to get back on its feet. Many hospitals were destroyed in the explosion, and those that survived are overflowing with patients. Consequently, the number of COVID-19 cases in Lebanon is expecting to grow as well. AFP Press quoted the governor of Beirut, Marwan Abboud, as saying that the explosion will leave up to 300,000 people homeless and cost about $3 billion to fix the blast damage.
According to CNN News, before the Beirut explosion occurred, Lebanon was already going through one of its toughest economic crises. Additionally, Lebanon's government was already getting backlash by its citizens for political corruption. As a result, a few days after the explosion hit, violent protests erupted amongst the streets of Lebanon. The protestors blamed the Lebanon government for bad management and for the negligence they showed towards the explosion.
On August 10, six days after the explosion and protests, Lebanon Prime Minister, Hassan Diab, resigned from office. In his resignation speech, he blamed the political elite for creating “an apparatus of corruption bigger than the state.” Regarding his government, he stated that, "We have decided to stand with the people.” Three cabinet ministers and seven members of the parliament have resigned as well.
After Diab’s resignation, Lebanon President Michael Aoun has requested Diab and his ministers to continue their duties until they can get another official to step in. Diab is actually the second prime minister to resign from the Lebanon government within the past few years. Former Prime Minister, Saad Hariri, resigned from office in late 2019, after receiving pressure from Lebanon’s earlier protest movements.
However, even after Diab resigned, angry and violent protesters have continued to march in the streets of Lebanon. According to CNN News, protesters threw stones and shards of glass at security forces. Police were called to the scene and fired tear gas and rubber bullets back. Both protesters and police were injured during the havoc. The protesters have continued to demand for more officials to resign and for Lebanon to examine and restructure its government.
Lebanon’s government receives lots of criticism for its political structure because it is divided among the predominant religions of the country. It requires that the president must be a Christian, the prime minister must be a Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the parliament must be a Shiite Muslim. This unique balance of power is known to be the cause of Lebanon’s political corruption and mismanagement.
Some people have considered the explosion and protests a turning point in Lebanon’s political history. Although Lebanon is receiving aid for the explosion and is starting to examine its unstable political structure, there is still so much to be done to help the country. Read more about how to help Lebanon here.
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