Protesters n Gemmayze, Beirut commemorating 20 months since the deadly Aug. 4, 2020, explosion at the Port of Beirut. (Credit: Thawra TV / Facebook)
BEIRUT — Dozens of protesters, including the families of the victims of the Aug. 4, 2020, Beirut port explosion, marched on Monday towards the port to demand justice from the authorities. Today marks the 20th month since the explosion.
Here’s what we know:
• The protesters held up portraits of their relatives who were killed by the blast, along with those of the injured. They marched from Beirut’s Gemmayze neighborhood towards the Statue of the Emigrant, located in front of the port, where they held a sit-in at the exact time of the tragedy, 6:17 p.m.
• The catastrophe was caused by the explosion of hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse for years without proper security measures. The presence of the combustible chemicals is blamed by many on the current political elite.
• On March 26, two women who were severely injured during the explosion passed away.
• Currently, the port blast investigation, led by judge Tarek Bitar, is suspended due to numerous requests to remove him from senior politicians and those implicated in his investigation.