FBI agents to take part in Beirut explosion probe at request of Lebanon

US calls for 'credible' probe after blast that has left 300,000 homeless, writes Tom Embury-Dennis

Firefighters stand in the shadow of Beirut's destroyed grain silo (Bel Trew)

US federal law enforcement agents are due to arrive in Beirut this weekend at the request of Lebanon in order to help investigate the cause of the massive port blast that killed 178 people.

David Hale, US undersecretary of state for political affairs, said FBI agents would travel to the city in order to find answers about the roots of the 4 August blast that left thousands injured and 300,000 homeless.

He called on Lebanese authorities to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation.

“We can never go back to an era in which anything goes at the port or the borders of Lebanon that had to contribute to this situation,” Mr Hale said after visiting the site of the blast.

He added: “We really need to make sure that there is a thorough, a transparent and credible investigation. I know that is what everyone is demanding."

The explosion, which authorities say was caused when 2,000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate unsafely stored at the port for years caught fire, has fuelled anger at Lebanon's ruling politicians who were already facing criticism over a financial meltdown that has sunk the currency, demolished the value of savings and left depositors unable to withdraw their money.

With the cause of the initial fire still unclear, some Lebanese people doubt the authorities can carry out a proper investigation and say foreign countries should intervene.

“We can't trust this government. They will lie to us. They should form an international committee to investigate this,” said businessman Jimmy Iskandar.

President Michel Aoun has said a probe will look into whether the cause of the blast was negligence, an accident or “external interference”.

“They won't do a thing in an investigation and the whole world knows that,” said painter Mohammed Khodr, as he helped repair a restaurant damaged in the blast.

The heavily armed, Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah, which is listed as a terrorist organisation by the US, said on Friday it would wait for results of the official Lebanese investigation into the blast.

But if it turns out to be an act of sabotage by neighbouring Israel then it would “pay an equal price”, Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said in a televised address. Israel has denied any role in the explosion, and no evidence has emerged suggesting otherwise.

Mr Nasrallah said his group was against an international investigation because its first purpose would be to “distance Israel from any responsibility for this explosion, if it had responsibility”. He said the participation of the FBI in an investigation would serve the same purpose.

The explosion has pitched Lebanon into a new political vacuum since the resignation of the government, which had formed in January with the backing of Hezbollah and its allies, including Mr Aoun.

Lebanon's most senior Christian cleric said the Lebanese people had run out of patience with ruling politicians.

In his strongest intervention since the blast, Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai said the church reserved the right to veto any proposals that further jeopardise Lebanon.

The Maronite church exercises political sway in a country where the head of state must be a Maronite, the prime minister a Sunni Muslim and the parliament speaker a Shi'ite Muslim.

The United Nations launched a $565 million (£432m) aid appeal on Friday. Priorities included stabilising the grain supply, UN humanitarian coordinator Najat Rochdi said on Saturday, after the explosion destroyed Lebanon's only port-based grain silo.

Six hospitals and more than 20 health clinics were damaged in the explosion and more than 120 schools destroyed, the UN says. “We would like to be able to rebuild the three hospitals that were completely destroyed,” Ms Rochdi said.

French investigators are also taking part in the Lebanese-led probe, and were seen on Saturyda in boats and on the ground near the scene of the blast. A French helicopter carrier was docked at the port as French troops were unloading equipment.

Additional reporting by agencies