Beirut Goes
Up In Smoke
By Andre Vltchek
August 06, 2020
"Information
Clearing House"
- To see Beirut and its port area with a huge mushroom
cloud hanging above is a truly surreal sight. But what
is not surreal in battered Lebanese capital?
A big part of
the downtown looks flattened, thoroughly ruined.
One of my
Japanese friends based in Beirut exclaimed:
“It looks
like Hiroshima!”
It does.
Who is behind
the carnage? What really happened? Nobody is claiming
responsibility. Was it sabotage, a direct attack against
Lebanon, or a politically motivated terrorist act?
What is certain
is that the “earth moved.” One of the explosions,
equivalent to a 4.5-magnitude earthquake, ruined
everything in its proximity. Blasts were heard all the
way across the sea in Cyprus, while some 20 kilometers
away, window panels at Rafik Hariri International
Airport, got shattered.
For five years,
I have been observing from my window and terrace this
magnificent sight: tall, often snow-covered mountains,
huge bay, and vast port area with cranes, tankers, and
mighty container cargo ships.
Once there was
a small fire in the port, and I could see each and every
detail of it. But now, everything changed. Two
explosions, one relatively small and one enormous,
turned the entire port area of Beirut into a war zone, a
target of carpet bombing. Or the aftermath of a nuclear
explosion.
People running
away, in horror. Women and children shouting, crying,
clinging to each other. The number of casualties is
still unknown. Preliminary reports speak of at least 73
persons killed, but there are most likely hundreds of
those who lost their lives. There are those still buried
under the rubble, burned beyond recognition. One entire
fire brigade just ‘vanished.’ Red Cross reported at
least 2.200 people injured. Soon after, the number shut
up to 4,000. Several crew members on the UNIFIL vessel,
which was docked in the Beirut port, injured. The
horrible count goes up and up.
Lebanese
medical system, mostly privatized and in terrible shape,
cannot cope with the carnage.
Red smoke is
levitating above the coast. What is it, really?
Speculations
and preliminary analyses are the most alarming.
The Canadian
Embassy began headcount of its staff. That fact has been
confirmed.
What has been
clearly a hoax is that the Embassy sent
scientific/medical warnings, which are now circulating
all over the social media, such as:
“It’s a
dropped bomb with depleted uranium (red color). Tell all
your loved ones to get away and don’t inhale. Try to go
in the opposite direction of the wind.”
Truth is
getting mixed with the fake news. Whether it was a bomb
is a very legitimate question. But the Canadian Embassy
definitely did not claim on its social media, that it
was.
There is an
“urgent message” from AUBMC (American University of
Beirut Medical Center), the most prestigious medical
facility in the Middle East. It even carries its logo at
the top of the page. But when I contacted AUBMC, the
staff strongly denied sending such messages:
“Everyone
in Lebanon needs to stay indoor… From the look of the
flame, the explosion looks nitric acid-based. PLEASE
STAY INSIDE!!!”
There is a long
message from AUB president, however, which begins with:
“Dear
members of the AUB community, I hope you and your
loved-ones are safe and starting to recover from the
catastrophic explosion which occurred earlier this
evening in the Port of Beirut. We already know of
thousands of injured and more than 67 dead. Property has
been destroyed over an area of many square kilometers,
including at AUB and AUBMC. Our hearts and our prayers
are with all those injured or lost in this awful
tragedy. We must do all we can, and some measure beyond
that, to care for those injured and heal the terrible
unseen wounds this has created. The AUBMC Emergency
Department, our medical faculty, nurses and staff are
all responding to hundreds of trauma cases, including a
number of serious and critical cases, with great skill
and professionalism…”
Why are rumors
being spread? Who is benefiting? What are the plans?
Each and every
piece of information has to be now verified.
Scrutinized. Double and triple checked.
Each piece of
‘fake news’ or outright fabrication may lead to yet
another “explosion,’ to the worsening of the political
violence. Lebanon is at the edge. And always when it is;
when it feels this way, thousands of innocent people
die. Everybody who has been living here, everyone who
understands its history, knows that it is exactly this
way here.
It is obvious
that there are certain groups in the country, who are
interested in spreading chaos in this long-suffering,
deeply injured land.
But there are
also very legitimate sources that believe that this is
an attack by hostile foreign states.
Some
trustworthy security sources that I approached are brief
in their analyses, and their preliminary conclusions are
chilling:
“Nuke hit
ballistic missile warehouse. The red smoke is fuel.”
But I don’t
know, yet; nobody knows.
The situation
is incredibly confusing. Everybody is still in shock and
mourning.
Some fingers
are pointing at Israel. Israel denies its involvement
and is offering help instead. Trump claims it was a
bomb, but does not elaborate.
RT
reported earlier on the day of the blasts:
“The
secretary-general of Lebanon’s Christian Kataeb Party,
or Phalange, Nizar Najarian, has been killed.”
Kataeb Party is
an extremist, violent right-wing Christian party, which
is in alliance with the pro-Saudi faction of former
Prime Minister Saad Hariri.
Welcome to
Lebanon-style political labyrinth!
*
Meanwhile,
Beirut inhabitants are frightened. Lebanon has been
faced with enormous problems, for at least one entire
year. From huge anti-establishment riots which began in
2019, to the outbreak of COVID-19 followed by lockdowns,
severe economic crises, and financial collapse.
Eventually, the controlled exchange rate between the
Lebanese pound and the U.S. dollar got abandoned, and
the local currency went nose-diving; it got sharply
devalued. For some time, people could withdraw only a
small amount of their savings from the local banks.
Political
confrontations have always been pounding Lebanon, but
recently they have been on the rise. The country is home
to countless political and religious parties and
movements, as well as shaky and temporary coalitions.
What is on the surface does not necessarily correspond
with what is forming the foundations.
For instance,
Hezbollah, which is an arch-enemy of Israel and which is
now on the U.S. terrorist list, has been actually the
most effective social organization, providing de
facto social security net for both Muslims and
Christians. But it is also a determined and powerful
force, always ready to defend Lebanon against the
Israeli invasions, therefore constantly on someone’s
‘hit list.’
Extreme
right-wing Christians could always swing either way;
from antagonizing mistreated Palestinians and siding
with Israel, to forming coalitions with Hezbollah. For
an outsider, all this makes no sense. But, somehow, it
does (often in a perverse way), at least for the
Lebanese, and for those of us who have spent a long time
in the country.
The explosions
took place just a few days before the U.N. court of
justice was going to read the verdict, in absentia,
against four Hezbollah members, who were allegedly
involved in the 2005 assassination of Rafik Hariri,
former prime minister of Lebanon. Some believe there is
a link, but I strongly disagree, knowing Hezbollah and
its political goals. This attack is definitely not
Hezbollah’s ‘style,’ nor would it be in the group’s
interests.
Lebanon has
always been a timebomb, with dozens of real terrorist
organizations forming so-called ‘dormant cells’; all
over the country, and naturally all over the city of
Beirut. Their proximity to each other, their
antagonistic nature, could lead to a catastrophe at any
moment.
*
Al
Mayadeen, a left-leaning
television channel which is close to both Hezbollah and
South American TeleSur, reported in its Arabic
service:
“Major
General Abbas Ibrahim told Al-Mayadeen that it is
possible that the explosion came from the highly
explosive materials that had been confiscated some time
ago, adding that course of investigations cannot be
anticipated and when they are finished we will circulate
confirmed information.
For his part, the Director-General of Customs announced
that nitrate is the cause of the huge explosion in the
port of Beirut.
As for the Minister of the Interior, Mohamed Fahmy,
during his inspection of the Beirut port, he said,
“Investigations must be awaited to find out the cause of
the explosion.”
The
latest by Al-Mayadeen restated that what
exploded was “Ammonium Nitrate.” And Al-Mayadeen
is closely connected to
Hezbollah.
*
Maki, a
Japanese aid worker, based in Beirut, commented:
“Hope
it’s not nuclear. This Mushroom shape of the smoke is
very worrying.“
Rana, a
Lebanese U.N. staff in Beirut, shared her thoughts:
“A lot of
speculations are going around: an accident in the
fireworks storage, an Israeli attack on Hezbollah or
army weapons. Nothing is certain right now, except that
there are tremendous damage and destruction.”
Before the
explosions, apparently, there was a drone circling above
the area of the disaster. The footage is clearly
depicting its presence in the sky. People are demanding
an explanation.
As no one is
claiming responsibility, it appears that for at least
some time, there will be many more questions than
answers. But that is much better than rushed
conclusions.
The tragedy is
enormous. The entire country is in shock. Emotions are
running high. One wrong move and this entire part of the
world could go up in flames. Again.
Right now, the
most important is to tend to thousands of wounded, bury
the victims, and investigate thoroughly and coolheadedly.
This may be the
most difficult, the most dangerous moment for Lebanon
since the end of the civil war. No time for
sectarianism. The country has to unite, grin its teeth,
and stoically fight for its very survival.
Those of us who
love and miss Lebanon, despite everything, will be
supporting it, as much as we can.
*
UPDATES:
The same day as
this essay went to print, three heavy-lift Russian
transport planes landed in Beirut, bringing an operation
theatre, medical staff, medicine, and other equipment
essential for saving lives.
President Trump
retracted his statement that the explosion was caused by
a missile.
President
Emmanuel Macron of France arrived in Beirut, promising
support, but raising fears that he may try to force
Lebanon back to Western orbit. On 6 August, according to
Reuters, he gave a speech in Beirut, declaring:
“French aid would not go to
“corrupt hands” and he would seek a new deal with
political authorities, Reuters reports.”
In the
latest update by RT:
“The source of the explosion is believed to be almost
3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate that was stored at a port
warehouse. The blast has taken the lives of at least 135
people, while 5,000 have been injured.”
Andre
Vltchek is a philosopher, novelist, filmmaker and
investigative journalist. He has covered wars and
conflicts in dozens of countries. Six of his latest
books are “New
Capital of Indonesia”,
“China
Belt and Road Initiative”,
“China
and Ecological Civilization”
with John B. Cobb, Jr., “Revolutionary
Optimism, Western Nihilism”, a
revolutionary novel “Aurora” and
a bestselling work of political non-fiction: “Exposing
Lies Of The Empire”.
View his other books here.
Watch Rwanda
Gambit,
his groundbreaking documentary about Rwanda and DRCongo
and his film/dialogue with Noam Chomsky “On
Western Terrorism”.
Vltchek presently resides in East Asia and Latin
America, and continues to work around the world. He can
be reached through his website,
his Twitter
and his
Patreon.
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views expressed in this article are solely those
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