Lebanon's Prime Minister resigns after explosion in Beirut port

Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab resigned on Monday. The explosion in the port of Beirut, which killed at least 160 people and reopened old wounds in Lebanese society, has intensified protests calling for a complete overhaul of Lebanon's political system, dominated by family dynasties that have succeeded each other in power for the past 15 years. 

During his speech he said that this tragedy was the result of "endemic corruption" and called for those responsible for this disaster to be brought to justice. Health Minister Hamad Hasan had announced several hours earlier that the Prime Minister intended to resign. Anger and indignation have triggered a wave of resignations, including that of the minister of justice, finance and youth, as well as the holders of the information and environment portfolios. 

"I announce today the resignation of this government," said Diab in a message to the nation in which he spoke of the fight against the corrupt and the need to have an Executive of national salvation. "Systems of corruption are bigger than the state" in Lebanon, said Diab, whose cabinet was formed in December 2019 in response to the wave of protests that erupted in the country in October against the corrupt and sectarian system of government.

"Some people have not read the Lebanese revolution of October 17 well, it was against them but they did not understand it," he added. He blamed the catastrophe on the "political class" which "fights with all the dirty means", without referring to any particular party or leader. The resigned prime minister said his government, described as a technocrat, had done "everything it could to save the country" but that there was a "great barrier" to change.

"They should be ashamed of themselves because their corruption has lasted seven years," he said, adding that the port disaster has since set in. In the meantime, violence has once again spread through the country's capital. Clashes between protesters and police have been ongoing for the third day in a row. According to EFE news agency, dozens of people threw stones and lit fires, to which security agents responded by throwing tear gas. 

The explosion was caused by almost 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate that had been stored at the port since 2014 without proper precautions, as Diab admitted on the day of the incident. It is not yet known what caused the cargo to explode, but several people responsible for its storage are being investigated.