Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials On The Beirut Bombing -- August 6, 2020

Lucia Stein, ABC News Online: Lebanon's banking, economic and political systems were already under threat before the explosion. Here's why

The massive blast that hit Lebanon's capital on Tuesday has delivered yet another devastating blow to a country already rocked by crises.

Well before the explosion, and even the coronavirus pandemic which upended the world, Lebanon was in the midst of the worst economic crisis in its history.

Half its population of 6 million lives near or below the poverty line and hundreds of thousands of people have lost their jobs.

The nation's currency has more than halved during the crisis, with people's savings locked up in inaccessible bank accounts.

And the pandemic has only further laid bare the strain the whole system is under.

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Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials On The Beirut Bombing -- August 6, 2020

Why the US and its allies should keep Lebanon from blowing apart -- Jon B. Alterman, The Hill
'Moment of reckoning': angry Lebanese vow not to let leaders off the hook -- Martin Chulov, The Guardian
Someone’s to Blame for the Beirut Blast -- Bloomberg
Why Hezbollah will not escape blame for deadly chemical blast in Beirut -- Hussein Ibish, The Print
I have reported from Lebanon for years. What I saw at the Beirut port after the blast was total devastation -- Cherine Yazbeck, ABC News Online
Lebanon is no stranger to disaster – but this is like nothing we've ever seen -- Kim Ghattas, The Guardian
Don't blame fate for Beirut's cruel tragedy -- Frida Ghitis, CNN
No lights, no glass, no money: Beirutis hamstrung in efforts to rebuild -- Bethan McKernan, The Guardian
Beirut explosion: What we know so far -- BBC
Beirut blast timeline: what we know and what we don't -- The Guardian

Bride Whose Wedding Video Shoot Captured The Moment Of The Beirut Explosion Returns To The Scene

Daily Mail: Bride whose wedding video shoot captured the moment catastrophic Beirut explosion returns to the scene and says she thought she would die in the blast

* Bride Israa Seblani said she wondered if she was going to die after the explosion
* Young couple were sent flying by the huge shockwave but remain unharmed
* Seblani arrived in Beirut three weeks earlier to prepare for her wedding

Radiant in a long white gown and veil, 29-year-old Lebanese bride Israa Seblani stands smiling and posing for her wedding video. The scene is shattered by a deafening roar, and a powerful shockwave nearly blows her off her feet.

The dramatic footage captured the moment when a massive explosion rocked the Lebanese capital on Tuesday, killing 135 people and injuring more than 5,000.

Seblani, a doctor working in the United States, helped to check on the injured nearby, before fleeing central Beirut's Saifi square to safety.

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Update: Beirut bride recounts horrors of wedding day blast (DW)

WNU Editor:That is a wedding shoot for the ages.

Who Is To Blame For The Beirut Bombing Disaster?

Daily Mail: 'It's crystal clear Hezbollah are in charge of the port and warehouse': Leading Lebanese politician blames terrorist group and 'corrupt' government for catastrophic explosion – as aerial images reveal blast even sank a cruise ship

* Bahaa Hariri, 54, has said everyone in the city knew that Hezbollah controlled Beirut's port and airport
* Blast has threatened to reignite anti-government protests in Lebanon that have been ongoing since last year
* At least 137 people have so far died, with some 5,000 wounded, 300,000 homeless, and widespread damage
* Investigators say 16 employees of Beirut's port have been detained and 18 questioned in total

A leading Lebanese opposition figure has blamed Hezbollah, along with the country's 'corrupt' government, for the devastating explosion in Beirut which capsized a cruise ship and has so far claimed 137 lives.

Bahaa Hariri, whose father, Prime Minister Rafiq, was assassinated in 2005, said last night everyone in the city knew Hezbollah controlled Beirut's port and airport and it was inconceivable that the authorities did not know the deadly ammonium nitrate was stored in a warehouse there.

Speaking for the first time Mr Hariri, 54, said: 'The question we have to ask is how come for six years this combustible material was allowed to remain in the middle of this city of two million people?'

'It is crystal clear Hezbollah are in charge of the Port and the Warehouse where the ammonium nitrate was stored.

'Nothing goes in and out of the Port or the Airport does so with them knowing. Nothing.

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More News On Who To Blame For The Beirut Bombing Disaster

Lebanese officials deflect blame as anger grows over Beirut blast -- Al Jazeera
Lebanese investigators focus on negligence in Beirut blast -- France 24
The ship carrying the ammonium nitrate that blew up in Beirut was abandoned in 2014 by a Russian businessman, who has said nothing since the explosion -- Business Insider
What Caused the Beirut Explosion? What We Know -- New York Times

Anger Is Growing In Lebanon

There is a growing sense of anger on the streets of Beirut as people protest against the authorities following the explosion which cost at least 135 lives on Tuesday - @EmmaMurphyITV reports pic.twitter.com/6wxvFocvW0

— ITV News (@itvnews) August 6, 2020

The Guardian: Beirut explosion: security forces confront protesters near parliament

Calls for inquiry mount as officials begin blame game over ammonium nitrate storage

Lebanese security forces have reportedly fired tear gas to disperse dozens of anti-government demonstrators angered by a huge and deadly explosion widely seen as the most shocking expression yet of their government’s incompetence.

The scuffles in central Beirut took place in a ravaged street leading to parliament, amid wreckage from Tuesday’s explosion still littering the area.

Protesters had sparked a blaze, vandalised stores and lobbed stones at security forces, according to the state-run National News Agency.

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WNU Editor: This is how revolutions start.

More News On The Growing Unrest In Lebanon

Beirut explosion: Angry residents rage at leaders after blast -- BBC
Lebanese police tear gas anti-government protesters in wake of devastating blast -- France 24
Beirut blast: Lebanon grows angry in search for answers in explosion aftermath -- NBC
Beirut Explosion Leads to Growing Anger as Lebanon Searches for Victims -- WSJ
Beirut port employees detained in investigation after devastating explosion sparks fury -- CNN
Beirut's Deadly Blast Reignites Anger Against Lebanon's Ruling Elite -- Foreign Policy

Beirut Bombing -- News Updates August 6, 2020

Daily Mail: Beirut counts the human cost: 300,000 people are left homeless with 50% of buildings damaged as death toll from fertilizer explosion nears 150 with thousands more injured

* Satellite images have revealed the true extent of the damage to Beirut's harbour after massive explosion
* Warehouse where blast happened is completely gone while surrounding buildings have been flattened
* At least 135 people died in the explosion with more expected, while 5,000 are wounded and tens missing
* Barely a building left untouched by blast the size of a small nuke, thought to have been sparked by a welder

Beirut has been brought to its knees by the devastating explosion which damaged half of the city's buildings and left hundreds of thousands homeless.

At least 135 were killed and 5,000 wounded on Tuesday following the blast at the port where 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate exploded.

The international community has rallied to send aid to the country already on the brink of economic ruin - but citizens are fearful Lebanon will never recover.

'This explosion seals the collapse of Lebanon. I really blame the ruling class,' said Hassan Zaiter, 32, a manager at the heavily damaged Le Gray Hotel in downtown Beirut.

The economic cost of the damage is thought to be around $5billion, added to the more-pressing human cost includes 300,000 people left homeless along with hospitals struggling to cope.

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Beirut Bombing -- News Updates August 6, 2020

LIVE: Protests as Lebanon detains 16 over Beirut explosion -- Al Jazeera
Sixteen Port of Beirut employees are arrested over cause of devastating explosion as tragic photo shows the moment firefighters tried to enter Warehouse 12 before store of ammonium nitrate ignited killing at least 145 people -- Daily Mail
Beirut explosion: Lebanese authorities detain workers, freeze assets -- DW
Beirut port manager among 16 held in blast probe, judicial source says -- ABC News Online
German diplomat confirmed killed in Beirut explosion -- DW
Victims of Beirut's explosion begin sifting through the rubble as hundreds of thousands face homelessness -- ABC News Online
Beirut blast pushes economy to edge as many remain missing -- Al Jazeera
'Lebanon was a heaven, they made it hell': Anger mounts in Beirut as activists vow anti-government protests after blast which killed at least 137 and wounded 5,000 as clean-up job is left to volunteers -- Daily Mail
‘Beirut is destroyed, my heart is broken’: Locals in despair over Lebanon blast -- France 24
Lebanese rally to assist those affected by Beirut explosion -- Al Jazeera
In pictures: Lebanon's capital in ruins after Beirut port explosion -- France 24
Beirut explosion aftermath revealed in satellite and drone images, officials estimate up to $20 billion in damages -- ABC News Online

How Big Was The Beirut Blast?

Lawrence Person's BattleSwarm Blog: Beirut Blast: How Many Kilotons?

Yesterday a massive explosion ripped through Beirut, Lebanon from the city’s port:

Sometimes you do calculations and get a result that you know must be wrong, and you report them anyway so others can spot your errors. Reports had the explosion shattering windows 10 kilometers away, and doing damage to the Beirut airport, so I set out to calculate the explosive yield using the Nukemap, based on shattering windows at the airport (the 1 psi overpressure ring) and ignoring radiation effects. (The nukemap interface is far more user friendly than the “Nuclear bomb Effects Computer” at the back of Samuel Glasstone’s The Effects of Nuclear Weapons.)

Here’s the map with the resulting 1 psi ring just reaching the airport:

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WNU Editor: According to the above calculations, the blast was about 1.98 Kilotons.

Who Owns The 2,750 Metric Tons Of Ammonium Nitrate That Is Being Blamed For The Massive Explosion That Rocked Beirut On Tuesday?

CNN: A Russian ship's cargo of dangerous ammonium nitrate was stranded in Beirut port for years

(CNN)As Lebanon's investigation into the devastating blast in Beirut continues, officials have pointed to a possible cause: A massive shipment of agricultural fertilizer that authorities say was stored in the port of Beirut without safety precautions for years -- despite warnings by local officials.

Documents newly reviewed by CNN reveal that a shipment of 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate arrived in Beirut on a Russian-owned vessel in 2013. The ship, named the MV Rhosus, was destined for Mozambique -- but stopped in Beirut due to financial difficulties that also created unrest with the ship's Russian and Ukrainian crew.

Once it arrived, the ship never left Beirut's port, according Lebanon's Director of Customs, Badri Daher, despite repeated warnings by him and others that the cargo was the equivalent of "a floating bomb."

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Update #1: Lebanese officials unloaded a 'floating bomb' and apparently ignored warnings for years, according to reports (Business Insider)
Update #2: Beirut deadly blast: What makes ammonium nitrate so dangerous? (DW)

WNU Editor: An abandoned ship with its abandoned cargo of ammonium nitrate being removed and put into storage where it stayed for six years until it exploded on Tuesday. Bottom line. No one owned this cargo.

Top Tweets On Tuesday's Beirut Port Explosion

Dramatic video shows a massive explosion near Beirut's port that caused destruction to homes miles away. Dozens have been killed and thousands are believed to be injured, officials say. https://t.co/wOOvmOdkM4 pic.twitter.com/2QxqtTfuQz

— CNN (@CNN) August 4, 2020

CNN drone footage shows some of the devastation caused by the massive explosion in Beirut. The blast rocked the Lebanese capital on Tuesday evening, leaving at least 100 dead and thousands injured. pic.twitter.com/WEmFCQ7BSi

— CNN (@CNN) August 5, 2020

#Beirut explosion was caused by an estimated 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate left unsecured for 6 years in a warehouse after it was confiscated by the authorities.
The explosion occurred while welding a warehouse opening to prevent theft. pic.twitter.com/MtHjCBYsN7

— NewsNewsNews (@NewsNewsNews999) August 4, 2020

Driving through Beirut shows the scale of damage from the massive explosion at the port area which sent a devastating blast wave across the Lebanese capital https://t.co/CCQdV6mur8 pic.twitter.com/h2jG3b9zTq

— Reuters (@Reuters) August 5, 2020

“It is a catastrophe, I’ve never seen something like that.”

Lebanon is in a state of emergency following a massive explosion in Beirut that killed at least 100 people and injured thousands.

Follow our LIVE coverage on the #BeirutBlast: https://t.co/8qEDq3qL5R pic.twitter.com/kSrpNt4oGf

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) August 5, 2020

BBC Arabic journalist Maryem Taoumi was conducting an interview when the explosion in Beirut took place

She was knocked over by the force of the blast but is safe

Warning: Contains upsetting scenes https://t.co/xdMWMBsOWJ pic.twitter.com/53dGzkXNEr

— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) August 5, 2020

A bride posing for a photos in her wedding dress has her session cut short in a terrifying manner - as the shock wave from the explosion that rocked Beirut hits. #beirutexplosion #Lebanon #Beirut #Explosions #Bride #weddingphotography #WeddingDress pic.twitter.com/U7XBM069gO

— Lisa Verzosa (@LisaVerzosa) August 5, 2020

Satellite Images Of Beirut's Port Before And After Explosion

WNU Editor: Everything is levelled.

Beirut Explosion Viewed From Apartment Building That Shows There Were 2 Major Explosions

WNU Editor: After the first explosion you can easily see a number of smaller explosions occurring, a growing fire, followed 30 seconds later by a massive explosion.

Update: Here is a better video (see below).

Moment Of Beirut Port Explosion During A Mass Broadcast Online Due To Covid-19 Restrictions

WNU Editor: Truly terrifying.

Beirut Port Explosion (Videos)

What Caused The Massive Explosion In Beirut?

ABC News Online: The explosion in Beirut was a massive store of ammonium nitrate blowing up. Here's what else we know

Here's what we know about the blast.

Where did it happen?

The explosion was at Beirut's shipping port district, which is close to the city's CBD.

What caused it?

What sparked the explosion is still unknown.

But Lebanon's Interior Minister said the blast was a store of about 2,750 tonnes of seized ammonium nitrate blowing up.

It had been in storage since 2014, but the details about why it was seized and where it came from are unclear.

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More News On What Caused The Massive Explosion In Beirut?

Beirut blast: what we know so far -- The Guardian
What We Know About the Explosions in Beirut, Lebanon: Live Updates -- NYTimes
Deadly Beirut blasts were caused by 2750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate, says PM Diab -- France 24
Officials say deadly Beirut explosion caused by 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate -- The Week
Ticking time bomb? Explosive stash that devastated Beirut was there since 2014, PM says vowing to punish responsible -- RT
Beirut explosion: What is ammonium nitrate and why is it so dangerous? -- SKY News
Ammonium nitrate: what is the chemical blamed for blast in Lebanese capital? -- The Guardian
Ammonium nitrate: fertilizer behind many industrial accidents -- France 24

Remembering The Beirut Marine Corps Barracks Bombing In 1983

AFP: Pence says 1983 bombing was opening salvo in 'war on terror'

US Vice President Mike Pence described the 1983 bombing of a Marine Corps barracks in Beirut as the opening shots of the "war of terror" Monday, as he issued fresh warnings to Iran and Hezbollah.

Speaking during a ceremony at another building used to house Marines in Washington, Pence berated Tehran and framed the attack that killed 241 Americans as part of a series of outrages that included 9/11.

"Thirty-four years ago today, America was thrust into war with an enemy unlike any we had ever faced," said Pence -- who is the father and brother of US Marines.

"The Beirut barracks bombing was the opening salvo in a war that we have waged ever since -- the global war on terror," he said.

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WNU Editor: This was the first "spectacular" terror attack that targeted Americans.

Remembering The Beirut Barracks Bombing 30 Years Later

Families Of Beirut Bomb Victims Mark 30th Anniversary Of First Major Terrorist Attack On US -- FOX News

It was Oct. 21, 1983, when the parents of Lt. William Scott Sommerhof received a letter from the 25-year-old Marine serving in Beirut, who wrote of his excitement to be returning home soon and who had already begun his Christmas shopping.

Two days later, Sommerhof and 240 other U.S. military personnel were killed when suicide bombers detonated two trucks of explosives at military barracks in Lebanon in the first major terrorist attack against the U.S. The attack was the deadliest day for the United States Marine Corps since the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II, and produced the highest death toll for the U.S. military since the first day of the Tet Offensive in the Vietnam War.

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More News On Remembering The Beirut Barracks Bombing 30 Years Later

Top Marine general, survivors recall 1983 Beirut bombing as early chapter in war on terrorism -- Washington Post/AP
Remembering the Beirut bombing 30 years later -- Dvids/U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe
Obama Mourns Marines Killed in 1983 Beirut Attack -- Voice of America
Obama Honors Beirut Bombing Victims, Families, Comrades -- US Department of Defense
On The 30th Anniversary Of The Beirut Marine Barracks Bombing, The Victims' Families Are Close To Receiving $1.9 Billion -- Andrew Goodman, Forbes
Thirty years later, a bombing in Lebanon still echoes -- BBC
Remembering the Beirut Barracks Bombing -- Tablet
The Beirut Bombing, 30 Years Later -- Daniel Larison, American Conservative
Lessons learned -- and forgotten --from Beirut Marine Barracks bombing -- K.T. McFarland, FOX News
PHOTOS: On This Day: U.S. Embassy in Beirut hit by massive car bomb -- Mercury News

Families Of 241 U.S. Servicemen Killed In Beirut Bombing Sue British Bank Standard Chartered For Concealing Iran`s 'Compensation Cash'

Rescue and clean-up crews search for casualties following the barracks bombing in Beirut, Oct 23, 1983. SSgt Randy Gaddo, USMC / U.S. Marine Corps

Families Of 241 U.S. Servicemen Killed In Beirut Bombing Sue British Bank For 'Helping Iran Hide Compensation Cash' -- Daily Mail

* Lawsuit seeks to enforce $2.6bn judgement in compensatory damages against Iran that was awarded to the bombing victims' families in 2007
* Civil action comes day after British bank agreed to pay $340m to New York State's financial regulator to settle allegations it concealed Iran-linked transactions worth $250bn

Relatives of the 241 servicemen killed in a 1983 bombing of a U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut have sued Standard Chartered after the British bank 'helped Iran hide $2.6billion in compensation'.

The civil lawsuit, filed yesterday in U.S. district court in Manhattan, is seeking to enforce a 2007 judgement in compensatory damages against Iran that awarded the $2.6billion to the bombing victims' families.

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My Comment: I wish them luck.

Remembering The Marines Barracks Bombing In Beirut 26 Years Ago

British soldiers give assist with rescue operations at the bomb-wrecked U.S. Marine command center near Beirut airport on Oct. 23, 1983. Imad Mughniyeh, the militant accused of attacks that left hundreds of Americans and Israelis dead, has been killed, Hezbollah said Feb. 13. The attack on the Marine base in Lebanon killed more than 260 Americans. Bill Foley / The Associated Press

War By Other Names -- City Journal

Twenty-six years after the Beirut bombing, the struggle against militant Islam continues.

In Beirut, 26 years ago today, the era of mass terror for Americans began with a big bang—and a smile. The bang came from 19 tons of explosives in a suicide truck bomb that demolished a four-story compound housing the U.S. Multinational Peacekeeping Force, a contingent of Marines who had been trying to keep a nonexistent peace in Lebanon for nearly a year. Two minutes later, a second truck bomb struck the French paratroopers across town, killing 58. By the time I arrived in Beirut from Cairo the following day, rescue workers from several countries were still struggling to free our wounded and dying soldiers from the debris. That night, I interviewed a Marine who had been guarding the entry post and who remembered only one thing about the driver of the Mercedes that had rammed through the compound’s concrete barriers: the young man with a beard, who turned out to be a 24-year-old Shiite Muslim, was smiling.

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My Comment: 26 years later, and we are still waiting for justice ....

Families Of Beirut Marines Fear They've Been Forgotten

Rescue and clean-up crews search for casualties following the barracks bombing in Beirut, Oct 23, 1983. SSgt Randy Gaddo, USMC / U.S. Marine Corps

From McClatchy News:

WASHINGTON -- For a quarter-century, Lt. Col. Howard Gerlach thought the explosion had blown him out the window of his second floor office. Then last year, at a reunion to mark the anniversary of the Oct. 23, 1983, bombing of the Marine headquarters at the Beirut airport, he met his rescuer.

Gerlach had been found trapped between the pancaked second and third floors. He remembers nothing about the immediate aftermath of the blast, which broke his neck and left him partially paralyzed. "You sure look a lot better now than the last time I saw you," his colleague told him.

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My Comment: It is hard to believe that it has been 26 years since this terror incident occurred. I know that justice will come one day for the families who lost their love ones in this bombing .... unfortunately .... it will not be today.

Roadside Bomb In Beirut Leaves Four Dead

Four Killed In Beirut Explosion -- BBC

Roadside Bomb In Beirut Leaves Four Dead -- Guardian

Targeting The US Again In Beirut -- Time Magazine

Iran & Hezbollah Targeted U.S. Embassy Officials in Lebanon -- Counter Terrorism Blog

Lebanon Blast Hits U.S. Embassy SUV, 3 Killed -- MSNBC

Beirut Blast Kills Three, Injures 22 -- LA Times

Attack On U.S. Embassy Car Kills 3 Near Beirut -- International Herald Tribune

Official: 3 Killed, U.S. Vehicle Targeted in Beirut Blast -- FOX News

Beirut Attack Fuels Political Tension -- BBC

Attack On US Vehicle In Beirut Kills 3 -- ABC News

Bomb Blast Targeting US Officials in Beirut Kills 4 -- Gateway Pundit

My Comment: I have the impression that someone is sending us a message.