'Impossible' that Beirut port blast was caused by Hezbollah arms, says president

 

FILE PHOTO: A general view shows the damaged port area in the aftermath of a massive explosion in Beirut, Lebanon, August 17, 2020. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis

 

ROME (Reuters) - Lebanese President Michel Aoun dismissed as “impossible” the chance that a vast explosion in Beirut’s port this month was caused by a blast from a deposit of Hezbollah arms, but said that all possibilities would be investigated.

 

Lebanese authorities are probing what caused massive amounts of ammonium nitrate warehoused unsafely for years at the port to denotate in a mushroom cloud on Aug. 4, killing 178 people, injuring 6,000 and destroying swathes of the city.

 

Aoun, an ally of the powerful Iran-backed Hezbollah movement, told Italian daily Corriere della Sera in an interview published on Tuesday that the group did not store weapons at the port, echoing comments by Hezbollah’s leader earlier this month.

 

“Impossible, but serious events like these light up spirits and imagination,” Aoun said when asked about people advancing the hypothesis, but added that “even this lead will be investigated”.

 

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has denied accusations that his heavily armed movement had weaponry warehoused at Beirut port. He has said that the group would wait for results of the investigation but if it turns out to be an act of sabotage by Israel then it would “pay an equal price”.

 

Hezbollah, which exercises sway over government in Lebanon, has fought several wars with Israel and is classified by the United States as a terrorist group.

 

Israel has denied any involvement in the blast.

 

Aoun has said the probe is looking into whether neglect, an accident or “external interference” caused the blast.

 

“Although it seems that (it) has been an accident, I want to avoid being accused of not having listened to every voice,” Aoun told the Italian daily.

 

He said that many people claimed seeing airplanes fly by the port just before the blast and, although “not very credible”, they should be listened to.

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-08-18

 

- Whatever you're going through, the Samaritans are here for you

- Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

a) For igniting ammonium nitrate not so much is needed: a small explosion with a 1/2 kg of dynamite is sufficient. We used lots of that stuff in Nigeria to blow up rocks in road building. So, a few grenades.. would be enough as starter.

b) The BIG question is not: did explosives of whatever militia or group caused this explosion, but… why so much and so long 2750 tons of ammonium nitrate were stored at one place = port of Beirut, nearly completely in control by Hezbollah , an organisation, which is caught red--handed in trying to store ammonium nitrate also on other places on the world ! Did Hezbollah reserved this pile of terrorist grade explosives to use whenever it pleased them ? As THAT is the question !