Graffiti in front of the port of Beirut. (Credit: Joao Sousa/L'Orient-Le Jour)
On the occasion of the fourth commemoration of Aug. 4, the first tributes to the 235 killed in the double explosion at the port of Beirut were paid by Lebanese officials on Sunday. The governor of the capital, Marwan Abboud, the president of the municipal council Abdallah Darwich, as well as other members of the council, went to the Beirut fire station to lay a wreath, while a representative for the army commander, Joseph Aoun, made a similar gesture at the port.
In the presence of the head of the fire brigade, Maher Ajouz, as well as officers of the fire brigade and guards, the capital's officials laid wreaths at the memorial dedicated to the martyrs of this brigade. While firefighters were dispatched to the scene to extinguish the fire in hangar 12 of the port of Beirut, ten of them – Joe Bou Saab, Sahar Fares, Mithal Hawa, Charbel Hitti, Najib Hitti, Rami Kaaki, Charbel Karam, Elie Khouzami, Ralph Mallahi and Joe Noun – were killed by the blast.
The explosion, caused by the ignition of large quantities of improperly stored ammonium nitrate, killed at least 235 people, injured 6,500 others and devastated entire neighborhoods in the Lebanese capital. Ammonium nitrate is a combustible chemical compound commonly used in agriculture as a fertilizer, but can also be used to make explosives.
This official ceremony took place a few hours before a double demonstration which is due to leave at 4 p.m. from Martyrs Square in the city's center and from the fire station, to converge on the port.
Many political leaders and embassies in Beirut also paid tribute to the victims in statements and social media posts, calling in particular for justice to be done.
The local justice investigation into the tragedy, led by Judge Tarek Bitar, has been at a standstill since February 2023 due to political interference from all sides.
This article originally appeared in French in L'Orient-Le Jour.