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Lebanese Officials Knew For Years That Tons Of Ammonium Nitrate Was Present In The Beirut Port. This Is Only Going To Intensify Anti-Government Sentiment In Lebanon

By on August 5, 2020 in Featured, General, Highlight

By Theodore Shoebat

Lebanese officials knew that the ammonium nitrate that caused the explosion in Lebanon was in the Beirut port, yet nothing was done to remove the explosive material. There were a series of warnings made by two different Director Generals of Customs, warning about the presence of the ammonium nitrate. These warnings were made from 2014 all the way to 2017. One of the letters reads: “We had desired at your side to kindly request the relevant marine agency to re-export a quantity of ammonium nitrate which was discharged from the ship RHOSUS”. The warnings specified how complaints were made about the explosive material and yet nothing was done about it. Salim Aoum, a member of the Lebanese Parliament, presented two letters — from 2016 and 2017 — on the complaints that were made, on Twitter and commented in outrage on how the Beirut Port Administration decided to keep the ammonium nitrate “for this period despite its seriousness?” He also asked why the letters were ignored. 

Lebanon has been having a tremendous amount of anti-government uproar since 2019. There were massive protests against government corruption, taxation, government incompetence. What will this explosion do, but further exasperate anti-government sentiment?

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