Lebanese pay tribute to the victims of the explosion and shout their anger in the street
The families of the victims during the commemoration ceremony for the anniversary of the explosion that killed more than 200 people in Beirut on August 4, 2020. AP - Hussein Malla
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In Beirut, one year to the day after the spectacular explosion in the port of the Lebanese capital, several thousand Lebanese gathered this Wednesday evening in tribute to the victims but also to express their anger against their leaders unable to form a government and get the country out of the crisis.
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On the highway overlooking the port of Beirut, they are thousands.
A minute of silence, applause, then this slogan almost absent from the streets since the deadly explosion a year ago: "revolution".
Shortly after 6 p.m., the time at which Beirut plunged into hell on August 4, 2020 when hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate devastated the capital, the soft light of these Mediterranean sunsets illuminates the ruins of the warehouses of the Harbor.
There, at the foot of the broken grain silos, the deep voice of a priest echoes religious litanies in front of the families of the victims.
A short distance away, near Parliament, tear gas, rubber bullets, Molotov cocktails, burnt tires, and clashes between demonstrators and security forces.
It's been a year, we are still in shock and we have never recovered from this suffering, this pain, this massacre against a whole people and I blame all the Lebanese politicians.
In Beirut, a mobilization between mourning and anger
Nicolas falez
Parades of protesters, concerts, prayers, candlelight vigils: Wednesday, the visual and sound cacophony illustrated the tensions of an entire nation, expressing in different forms its trauma and mourning.
All afternoon, in small groups, they walked towards the port of Beirut, where the carcass of the broken grain silos still stands.
The relatives of the victims and activists demand in particular the lifting of parliamentary immunity behind which hide some deputies and former ministers in the crosshairs of justice.
Clashes between police and demonstrators
As thousands of Lebanese gathered near the port, hundreds more made their way to the Parliament not far away, some trying to get through the barbed wire and concrete blocks erected in the wall and blocking the various entrances leading to the building.
Protesters then threw stones at the security forces, who responded with tear gas and water cannons to disperse them.
Police officers also beat some demonstrators with batons.
►Also read: A year after the deadly explosion in the port of Beirut, Lebanon between tributes and anger
The clashes, which continue, left dozens of injured, including eight hospitalized, according to the Red Cross, which treated most of them on the spot.
In a statement, the internal security forces (ISF) warned that they would "
resort to legitimate and proportionate means in accordance with the laws in force against non-peaceful demonstrators
".
(
With
AFP)
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