RFI
08 Aug 2020, 14:46 GMT+10
As rescuers continue to search the rubble for survivors of Tuesday's double explosion in Beirut, Lebanese President Michel Aoun has rejected calls for a global investigation, saying such a probe would "dilute the truth".
Lebanon's president rejected any international probe into the catastrophic Beirut port blast, saying a missile or negligence could have been responsible for Tuesday's explosion, which killed at least 154 people and devastated swathes of the capital.
The entrenched Lebanese ruling class has come under fire once again since the blast.
A political system rotten to the core
The revelation that a huge shipment of hazardous ammonium nitrate had languished for years in a warehouse in the heart of the capital served as shocking proof to many Lebanese of the rot at the core of their political system.
President Aoun admitted on Friday that the "paralysed" system needed to be "reconsidered".
He pledged "swift justice", but rejected widespread calls for an international probe, telling a reporter he saw it as an attempt to "dilute the truth".
Two possible explanations for the blast
"There are two possible scenarios for what happened: it was either negligence or foreign interference through a missile or bomb," he said, the first time a top Lebanese official raised the possibility that the port had been attacked.
What ignited the massive shipment of the chemical remains unclear -- officials have said work had recently begun on repairs to the warehouse, while others suspected fireworks stored either in the same place or nearby.
Near the site of the explosion, by the carcass of the port's giant grain silos, rescue teams from France, Russia, Germany, Italy and other countries continue their search efforts.
WFP promises emergency wheat imports
The World Food Programme has promised to help affected families and has offered wheat imports to replace lost stocks from the silos. US President Donald Trump said he would join other leaders in a conference call Sunday to discuss coordinating international aid.
Four bodies were uncovered near the port's control room Friday, where a significant number of people were believed to have been working at the time of the blast.
No one has been found alive.
Get a daily dose of Pakistan Telegraph news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Pakistan Telegraph.
More InformationLONDON, U.K.: At least 13 people are believed to have taken their own lives as a result of the U.K.'s Post Office scandal, in which...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: Travelers at U.S. airports will no longer need to remove their shoes during security screenings, Department of Homeland...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: An elaborate impersonation scheme involving artificial intelligence targeted senior U.S. and foreign officials in...
SLUBICE, Poland: Poland reinstated border controls with Germany and Lithuania on July 7, following Germany's earlier reintroduction...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: After months of warnings from former federal officials and weather experts, the deadly flash floods that struck the...
MOSCOW, Russia: Just hours after his sudden dismissal by President Vladimir Putin, Russia's former transport minister, Roman Starovoit,...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Former British prime minister Rishi Sunak will return to Goldman Sachs in an advisory role, the Wall Street...
LONDON, U.K.: Physically backed gold exchange-traded funds recorded their most significant semi-annual inflow since the first half...
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands: Some 32 percent of global semiconductor production could face climate change-related copper supply disruptions...
NEW YORK, New York - U.S. stocks rebounded Tuesday with all the major indices gaining ground. Markets in the UK, Europe and Canada...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Financial markets kicked off the week on a cautious note as President Donald Trump rolled out a fresh round...
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil: At a two-day summit over the weekend, the BRICS bloc of emerging economies issued a joint declaration condemning...