Lebanese government resigns after Beirut blast, public anger
Blade news servcies
Mon, 10 Aug 2020 20:02:46 GMT
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BEIRUT — Lebanon’s prime minister announced his government’s resignation on Monday, saying a huge explosion that devastated Beirut and triggered public outrage was the result of endemic corruption.
The Aug. 4 detonation at a port warehouse of a cache of ammonium nitrate killed at least 163 people, injured more than 6,000, and destroyed swathes of the Mediterranean capital, compounding months of political and economic meltdown.
“Today we follow the will of the people in their demand to hold accountable those responsible for the disaster that has been in hiding for seven years,” Prime Minister Hassan Diab said in a speech announcing the resignation.
He blamed the disaster on endemic corruption and said those responsible should be ashamed because their actions had led to a catastrophe “beyond description.”
“I said before that corruption is rooted in every lever of the state, but I have discovered that corruption is greater than the state,” he said, pointing to a political elite for preventing change and saying his government faced a brick wall on reforms.
While Mr. Diab’s move attempted to respond to popular anger about the blast, it also plunged Lebanese politics deeper into turmoil and may further hamper already-stalled talks with the International Monetary Fund on a financial rescue plan.
The talks, launched in May, were put on hold because of inaction on reforms and a row between the government, banks, and politicians over the scale of vast financial losses.
President Michel Aoun accepted the resignation and asked Mr. Diab’s government — formed in January with the backing of Iran’s powerful Hezbollah group and its allies — to stay as a caretaker until a new cabinet is formed, a televised announcement said.
Before Mr. Diab’s announcement, three of his 20 Cabinet ministers had resigned, as had at least seven members of the country’s 128-member parliament. But those moves were not enough to topple the government or spur new elections.
At the White House, President Trump said the blast had triggered what he called “a revolution,” but did not comment further.
Earlier, demonstrations broke out for a third day in central Beirut, with some protesters hurling rocks at security forces guarding an entrance leading to the parliament building. Guards responded with tear gas.
For many Lebanese, the blast was the last straw in a protracted crisis over the collapse of the economy, corruption, waste, and dysfunctional governance, and they have taken to the streets demanding root-and-branch change.
“The entire regime needs to change. It will make no difference if there is a new government,” Joe Haddad, a Beirut engineer, told Reuters. “We need quick elections.”
Forming a government amid factional rifts has been daunting in the past. Now with growing public discontent with the ruling elite over the blast and a crushing financial crisis, it could be difficult to find a candidate willing to be prime minister.
After former premier Saad Hariri stepped down in October, 2019 amid anti-government protests over perceived corruption and mismanagement, it took more than two months to form Mr. Diab’s government.
His Cabinet was under severe pressure to step down. Some ministers had already resigned over the weekend and Monday while others, including the finance minister, were set to follow suit, ministerial and political sources said.
Mr. Diab said on Saturday he would request early parliamentary elections.
Mr. Aoun has said explosive material was stored unsafely for years at the port. In later comments, he said the probe would consider whether the cause was external interference as well as negligence or an accident.
The cabinet decided to refer the investigation of the blast to the judicial council, the highest legal authority whose rulings cannot be appealed, a ministerial source and state news agency NNA said. The council usually handles top security cases.
On Monday, a French chemical expert working at the shattered port told the Associated Press that his team is working to secure at least 20 potentially dangerous chemical containers there after finding one that was leaking.
He also said there are flammable liquids in other containers as well as batteries and other products that could raise the risk of an explosion. The expert identified himself only as Lt. Anthony in accordance with French government policy.
Michel Najjar, the nation’s public works minister, said he learned about the material’s presence 24 hours before the blast, receiving a report about the material and holding a meeting with port officials before calling its chief, Hassan Korayetem.
“I wrote a report in the morning, the explosion happened in the evening,” he said. Asked why he only learned of it the day before, he said, “I don’t know. Truly I don’t know.”