Massive explosion rocks Beirut

The cause of the blast was not immediately clear. State-run National News Agency reported that it began as a fire in a fireworks warehouse. Another Lebanese news outlet, al Mayadeen, reported that the blast occurred in a warehouse storing the flammable chemical benzene. There were also reports that the substance that caused the largest blast may have been sodium nitrate.

Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab addressed the ongoing crisis in the country’s capital and said the incident “will not pass without accountability” and that “those responsible will pay for what happened.”

He also appealed to the international community for assistance in dealing with the thousands of people hurt in the blast.

“I am sending an urgent appeal to friendly and brotherly countries … that love Lebanon, to stand by its side and help us treat these deep wounds,” Diab said, according to Al Arabia. He also declared that Wednesday would be a national day of mourning.

Amid reports of explosives stored at the site, Diab said, “Facts on this dangerous depot, which has existed since 2014 or the past six years, will be announced.” However, he didn’t elaborate on the specifics of what was stored and by whom.

The Jordanian Seismological Observatory reportedly said the explosion was equivalent to a magnitude 4.5 earthquake.

A senior administration official told the Washington Examiner that the White House is monitoring the situation. White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany did not offer any new details about the blast when asked during a planned press conference on Monday afternoon. She said the news was breaking just as she was preparing for the briefing but noted the White House was “tracking it closely.”

The Pentagon is “greatly concerned for the apparent loss of life from such destruction,” Maj. Rob Lodewick, with the Office of the Secretary of Defense, told the Washington Examiner.

“We are actively monitoring developments but have nothing to offer regarding the cause of the explosion nor its aftermath,” Lodewick added in a statement.

The explosion comes ahead of a United Nations tribunal that is expected to issue a verdict on Friday in the 2005 bombing death of Prime Minister Rafic Hariri. The four people involved, who are being tried in absentia, are members of Iran-backed Hezbollah.

Hariri’s home is located near the site of the explosion, and his son, former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, was inside, although he was reportedly uninjured. Hariri said in a tweet that the magnitude of the disaster “was too great to be described.”

“Everyone is called to Lebanon’s rescue and to stand in solidarity with our people in all the affected neighborhoods,” Hariri said.

Israel, which struck Syrian targets overnight, denied any involvement in Tuesday’s Beirut blast. Israel’s foreign minister, Gabi Ashkenazi, reportedly told an Israeli TV station that the explosion was likely an accident caused by a fire. Ashkenazi and Israeli defense minister Benny Gantz offered Lebanon humanitarian and medical assistance following the tragedy.

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin tweeted, “We share the pain of the Lebanese people and sincerely reach out to offer our aid at this difficult time.”

At least 73 bodies have already been recovered, a number likely to grow. The Lebanese health minister said that the total number hurt in the explosion was a “very high number.” It will take time for rescue workers to sift through the rubble of the destroyed buildings and for hospitals, already overwhelmed by the coronavirus pandemic, to take stock of the number of victims.

Timour Azhari, a reporter for al Jazeera, was near the port shortly after the explosion. He said that area had been reduced to a “wasteland.”

“Rescue services have not been able to reach the actual site of the explosion yet because fires are still raging. Helicopters are circling the area trying to extinguish the fire,” Azhari said. “It really was an incredible explosion. People here are saying that they have never seen anything like it.”

A State Department spokesperson told the Washington Examiner that the agency has no information about the cause of the explosion.

“Reporting indicates the explosion occurred in/around the port of Beirut. We extend our deepest condolences to all those affected, and stand ready to offer all possible assistance. We are working closely with local authorities to determine if any U.S. citizens were affected,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “We urge U.S. citizens in the affected areas who are safe to contact their loved ones directly and/or update their status on social media. If you are in the affected area and need immediate emergency services, please contact local authorities.”

The blast damaged the presidential palace in Beirut, although Lebanese news outlets reported no injuries at the residence. NNA reported, “Doors and windows in several of the palace’s wings were dislocated.” The explosion was so powerful that it was reportedly heard some 150 miles away on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.

Azhari said that the Hotel Dieu hospital, which is handling hundreds of casualties, sustained damage to its building from the blast.

“There are corridors lined with wounded, bloody people,” he said. “There are people crying. The hospital itself has sustained damage; its ceiling looks very precarious, it looks like it’s going to fall apart.”

The secretary-general of the country’s Kataeb political party was in his office during the explosion and reportedly died from injuries sustained in the blast.

Leaders across the globe have begun to react to the tragedy. In the United Arab Emirates, the Burj Khalifa, which is the world’s tallest building, was lit up with the Lebanese flag in a show of solidarity.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted, “The pictures and videos from Beirut tonight are shocking. All of my thoughts and prayers are with those caught up in this terrible incident. The UK is ready to provide support in any way we can, including to those British nationals affected.”

Qatar and Turkey have also offered Lebanon assistance, and French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted in Arabic, “France has always stood by Lebanon. There is French aid, which is now being transferred to Lebanon.”

Ghada Alsharif, a reporter with Lebanon’s English-language Daily Star, posted a video of the newspaper’s offices, which were near the area of the blast.