NEWS: Beirut Explosion

[dewline]

Major explosion in downtown Beirut today.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/lebanon-beirut-explosion-1.5673644

Do any of you have friends or relatives or colleagues there?

Comments

[cmcmck]

Thankfully no.

Almost certainly acts of terrorism given the names concerned and the trial which is going on there atm.

[dewline]

No one seems to have demanded to be blamed yet for this. Whatever this is.

[moon_custafer]

At least for the moment, the reports I've seen suggest a building by the waterfront caught on fire and turned out to have explosive materials in storage: https://www.npr.org/2020/08/04/898969935/massive-explosion-rocks-beirut-damaging-buildings-and-shattering-windows

So maybe a terrible Halifax-explosion-type accident, rather than terrorism.

[dewline]

A Halifax 1917-type situation would not surprise me as being at the root of this. Industrial accidents still happen.

[moon_custafer]

I'm worried that even if it is accidental, lots of people will blame terrorism anyway and political tensions will rise even higher.

[cmcmck]

Apparently there was also an attack on the compound of the family involved in the trial so it could be two separate incidents.