A cohort of independent UN experts has called on the Human Rights Council to launch an international investigation into the massive explosion in Beirut two year ago, with a view to securing justice for those who died and were injured.
The powerful blast, caused by a stockpile of ammonium nitrate in a port warehouse, occurred on August 4, 2020, and killed more than 200 people while decimating a vast swath of the Lebanese capital.
Shortly after the 2020 explosion, 37 UN human rights experts issued a joint statement calling on the Lebanese government and the international community to respond effectively to calls for justice and restitution.
Instead, the national investigation process has been obstructed several times, the experts said. Families of the victims have therefore appealed to the international community to establish an independent investigation under the Human Rights Council, hoping that it will produce answers that Lebanese authorities have failed to provide.
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