Report: Beirut Explosion... No Accountability, No Investigations' Outcomes

A year has passed since the Beirut port explosion, which changed the face of the city and claimed more than two hundred lives and thousands of injured, without holding those responsible to account, especially because of political obstacles that hinder the investigation.

On August 4, 2020, a fire broke out in the port of Beirut, followed at six and a few minutes (15.00 GMT) by a huge explosion that reached the island of Cyprus, and caused huge damage to the port and most of the eastern neighborhoods of the Lebanese capital, and uprooted countless doors and windows in the city and its environs.

The authorities attributed the explosion to 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate stored since 2014 at crossing 12 in the port of Beirut.

In a country that witnessed during the past twenty years many assassinations, bombings, and incidents, none of which was revealed, except rarely, and none of the perpetrators was held accountable.

The Lebanese, led by the families of 214 dead and more than six thousand wounded, are still waiting for answers to their questions: Who came up with these huge amounts of ammonium nitrate to Beirut? Why were seven years left in the port, and who knew about it and its dangers? What sparked one of the world's largest non-nuclear explosions?

Judicial sources confirm that the bulk of the investigation is over. Today, however, political immunities and permissions stand in the way of summoning deputies, former ministers, and heads of security and military agencies who were aware of the dangers of storing huge quantities of ammonium nitrate in the port of Beirut, and did nothing to get them out.

- Nitrate charge -

There were conflicting reports about the reasons for its stop in Beirut, but the Lebanese judiciary issued a decision to seize the ship after a legal complaint against it by a Lebanese company for reasons related to its dues on the ship. In 2014, the cargo was offloaded and placed in hold No. 12, before the worn-out vessel sank in 2018.

The shipment of ammonium nitrate was destined for the explosives factory "Fabrica de Explosos de Mozambique", the same factory told AFP in a report published on Monday. However, the factory did not claim the cargo after it stopped in Lebanon, which raises questions about the validity of its last destination.

The investigation is looking into media reports that three Syrian businessmen, who also hold Russian citizenship, played a role in the purchase of a shipment of ammonium nitrate.

The explosion shed light on the vital facility, which is a microcosm of the institutions of the Lebanese state in terms of rampant corruption, nepotism, bribery, and the influence of political forces in it.

Security sources said that the fire may have been caused by welding the Amber Gate, a story that many doubt.

The judicial investigator sent inquiries to more than ten countries, asking some of them to cooperate in the investigation of the ammonium nitrate shipment, and others, including France, the United States, India, Turkey, Spain and Italy, to provide him with satellite images of the port.

The judicial source said, "None of them responded to the request of the Lebanese judiciary, while France reported alone that it did not have a satellite over Lebanon on the day of the explosion."

Several reports stated that the amount of ammonium nitrate that exploded was less than 2,750 tons, indicating that quantities of it were taken out of the amber (most likely stolen) during the past years.

In the span of the seven years, security services and former and current officials were informed of the presence of huge amounts of ammonium nitrate in the port of Beirut, including President Michel Aoun, caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab, and current and former ministers, according to the AFP report.