{"id":42570,"date":"2025-08-03T16:53:15","date_gmt":"2025-08-03T16:53:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/42570\/"},"modified":"2025-08-03T16:53:15","modified_gmt":"2025-08-03T16:53:15","slug":"no-accountability-for-beirut-port-blast-as-businesses-reopen-after-self-funded-rebuild","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/42570\/","title":{"rendered":"‘No accountability’ for Beirut port blast as businesses reopen after self-funded rebuild"},"content":{"rendered":"

Victims of the Beirut port blast<\/a> say they have not received promised insurance payouts and still await accountability for those responsible for the devastation \u2212 as impacted businesses continue to search for answers, reparations and justice, five years on. <\/p>\n

Much of the reconstruction was carried out by residents and business owners with support from Lebanese expatriate community, international aid agencies and NGOs, analysts say.<\/p>\n

The Beirut port explosion, triggered by improper storage of nearly 3,000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate, killed more than 220 people, injured thousands and flattened large parts of the capital on August 4, 2020. No high-ranking officials have been convicted over the blast. <\/p>\n

At the time, the World Bank<\/a> estimated that the explosion caused losses of more than $8 billion, with severe damage to buildings and infrastructure, and economic decline from the numerous businesses affected.<\/p>\n

Lebanon’s real gross domestic product contracted by 24.6 per cent in 2020, largely because of the blast, with a contraction of 33.2 per cent in the third quarter if that year, Beirut-based Byblos Bank said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere’s been no accountability,\u201d Nasser Saidi, a former economy minister and deputy governor of Lebanon’s central bank, told The National from Beirut.<\/p>\n

The inquiry has repeatedly been hampered by political interference, legal challenges and the removal of lead investigators, leaving victims\u2019 families still searching for answers.<\/p>\n

Mr Saidi said: \u201cWe have not seen a report, a verifiable report, of why the explosion took place. This issue of accountability is important because it covers the overall perception that things happen in Lebanon \u2013 disasters, economic collapse \u2013 and there is no accountability.\u201d<\/p>\n

Who paid? <\/p>\n

The Lebanese government has failed to help businesses and people affected by the blast, Mr Saidi said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe state has been nearly absent. So what has happened is that it is the private-sector people who rebuilt their own lives and businesses and homes \u2026 supported by NGOs, charities and the like \u2026 and the Lebanese expatriate community was the main contributor to reconstruction,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

However, \u201cnot everything has been rebuilt, but a good part of the homes and small businesses have started again and its mainly because of external finance,\u201d Mr Saidi said. His own apartment was damaged in the blast and he rebuilt it himself.<\/p>\n

Lebanon was in the throes of economic crisis when the blast ripped through the port, with the Lebanese pound losing more than 90 per cent of its value against the US dollar on the black market after decades of financial mismanagement and corruption by ruling elite.<\/p>\n

The country\u2019s economy went into a tailspin after the government defaulted on about $31 billion of Eurobonds in March 2020.<\/p>\n

Lebanon\u2019s economy shrank about 58 per cent between 2019 and 2021, with its GDP plummeting to $21.8 billion in 2021, from about $52 billion in 2019, the World Bank<\/a> said in a report in 2022, calling it the world’s worst economic collapse since the 1850s.<\/p>\n

The Covid outbreak in early 2020 exacerbated the situation, with the private sector contracting amid a drop in demand and rising inflation.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Food and dining, hospitality, retail, real estate and the commercial sector are those to have reopened for business.<\/p>\n

Michael Young, a senior editor at the Malcolm H Kerr Carnegie Middle East Centre in Beirut, said he too had to spend his own savings to repair his damaged apartment.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was told the state would pay me a share and the army came twice to my home to assess damages. I didn\u2019t get a cent, however, and had to pay several thousand dollars out of my own pocket. I suspect this was widespread and many businesses simply closed, as the blast came on top of the financial collapse and Covid crisis,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Calculating the cost <\/p>\n

The World Bank in a preliminary report after the blast put total estimated costs at $8.1 billion \u2013 $4.6 billion in damage to infrastructure and physical assets, and $3.5 billion in economic losses as a result of the decline in Lebanese output.<\/p>\n

Housing, transport and cultural assets, including religious and archaeological sites and national monuments, were badly affected.<\/p>\n

Physical damage in the housing sector was estimated at between $1.9 billion and $2.3 billion, the cultural sector at $1 billion to $1.2 billion, and the transport and ports sector at between $280 million and $345 million. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The World Bank also estimated the damage to the tourism sector at between $170 million and $205 million, commerce and industry at between $105 million and $125 million, and health care at $95 million to $115 million. It put damage to the financial sector at between $10 million and $15 million.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeirut continues to grapple with the aftermath of the blast, especially in the areas most affected by the explosion,\u201d said Samer Talhouk, senior economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome businesses in the affected areas have closed down permanently, while some damage can still be seen, especially in the lower income areas adjacent to the port.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those who delivered <\/p>\n

Mr Talkhouk said economic activity in affected areas has recovered but not to pre-blast levels. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere are some businesses that have closed permanently and not reopened, while new business have replaced some old ones in the area.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rebuilding process has largely been driven by private initiatives, NGOs and international aid, rather than the Lebanese government, Mr Talhouk added.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany property owners and businesses relied on support from local and international NGOs, diaspora donations and some international agencies. A large portion of people affected have also relied on their savings to rebuild their damaged properties.\u201d <\/p>\n

Lebanese banks’ arbitrary restrictions on their clients’ access to savings in their accounts complicated matters.<\/p>\n

On the first anniversary of the blast, the international community pledged about $370 million to help support Lebanon’s reconstruction.<\/p>\n

French President Emmanuel Macron pledged $120 million, while Joe Biden, US president at the time, announced $100 million in aid. <\/p>\n

Germany, Kuwait, Canada and Sweden pledged $50 million, $30 million, $20 million and $14 million, respectively.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was lot of foreign aid, especially from Lebanese expatriates around the world, that poured in to support the affected families and neighbourhoods, and to fill the vacuum that the government at the time left behind,\u201d said Nassib Ghobril, chief economist at Byblos Bank. <\/p>\n

Port operations<\/p>\n

The Beirut port, which suffered extensive damage, has not resumed to full operations as the heavily destroyed part has yet to be rebuilt, Mr Ghobril said.<\/p>\n

The port suffered damage of about $350 million in the explosion, the World Bank said.<\/p>\n

The container processing section, however, is \u201cfunctioning normally, with the most recent figures showing the port of Beirut was the entry point for 61 per cent of Lebanon\u2019s merchandise imports in the first five months of 2025, while it was the exit point of 41.2 per cent of merchandise exports in the same period of time\u201d.<\/p>\n

But the port has not just been overcoming the aftermath of the blast, it has also been dealing with Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping that have impacted the maritime industry, analysts say.<\/p>\n

In the second quarter of 2020, before the blast, Beirut port was ranked 120th in UNCTAD’s Port Liner Shipping Connectivity Index. By the second quarter of 2025, the port’s ranking had plummeted to 133rd. <\/p>\n

However, despite this most recent drop, the port’s ranking had improved in to 85th position in the first quarter of 2024, indicating signs of recovery after the blast. However, this was undone by the impact of the Houthis’ Red Sea attacks on shipping.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe subsequent fall in ranking can very likely be attributed to the rerouting of ships due to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea,\u201d Niels Rasmussen, Bimco’s head of shipping market analysis, told The National. \u201cThe re-routing not only reduced the number of ships transiting the Suez Canal but also the number of ships continuing into the Eastern Mediterranean after having sailed around the Cape of Good Hope.\u201d <\/p>\n

Business owners speak out<\/p>\n

Charbel Bassil, owner of Le Chef restaurant: <\/p>\n

Le Chef is one of Beirut’s oldest restaurants owned by Charbel Bassil. It’s a family-owned business that is very popular among tourists and locals for its homestyle dishes and affordable prices. Damage from the port explosion forced the popular Gemmayzeh spot to close down for the first time since Francois Bassil, Mr Charbel’s father, opened the restaurant in 1967.<\/p>\n

When the blast happened, business was slow due to the coronavirus pandemic and Lebanon’s economic crisis. Lockdown measures meant the restaurant was open only a few days a week, and would usually serve only a few tables.<\/p>\n

At the time of the explosion, Mr Charbel had two customers. The blast destroyed everything he and two of his staff were injured, one badly.<\/p>\n

The restaurant was shut down for four months. In December 2020, it was able to reopen with the help of a community fund-raiser launched by loyal customers. A generous donation of $5,000 by actor Russell Crowe helped Le Chef open its doors again.<\/p>\n

The Gladiator actor made the pledge in memory of celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain, who featured Le Chef twice on his TV show No Reservations.<\/p>\n

Mr Bassil said: \u201cSome people called me and said they wanted to help us rebuild. I didn’t know what to say, so I consulted my brother because we’re a family business, and he said ‘why not, whatever support people offer us, God will give them back twofold’.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe’re blessed with people’s love and support, we thank God for this gift and we thank God that we were able to survive this.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur plan was to work and rebuild with the money we make, this is how we have done it over the past decades, through all of Lebanon’s crises. But we were open to people helping us and we appreciate it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Business has since returned to normal but Mr Charbel says there’s always a sense of fear in Lebanon of what comes next.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe’re tired, we just want some peace, we want calm, we’re tired of all the crises. But regardless, we resist and we live, what else can we do?\u201d <\/p>\n

He could not say how much the business had lost.<\/p>\n

Mohamad Al Ayan, owner of a convenience store: <\/p>\n

Mohamad Al Ayan, 38, who owns a convenience store in Sodeco in east Beirut, spoke of how he struggled to rebuild his damaged shop after the blast.<\/p>\n

The area is around 3km from the port but still suffered extensive damage. Although it was during the pandemic, he had permission to open until 3pm. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was the worst day of my life because we were stuck inside for 15 minutes, we didn\u2019t know what was going on. It was dark, there was screaming.\u201d <\/p>\n

Initially he thought the city\u2019s tallest building, Sama Beirut, opposite the shop, had been bombed, such was the extent of the damage to his shop. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was like a nightmare,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n

Mr Al Ayan stayed until midnight to fix his electricity feed and rebuild the front door so no one could break in. He remembers how all of the businesses and buildings in the area were \u201cbroken\u201d, their shopfronts destroyed and glass shattered. <\/p>\n

Much of Al Ayan\u2019s inventory was destroyed and an expensive fridge was ripped from its position and flung outside by the blast. He doesn\u2019t remember exactly how much the damage cost but it was a lot for a small business. It would be at least two days until he could reopen.<\/p>\n

\u201cI paid a lot of money. Many thousands. No one gave me one dollar,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He paid for everything himself and did not have any insurance. No one from the government came to offer support or visit. Some NGOs made inquiries but \u201cdisappeared\u201d. <\/p>\n

Mr Al Ayan has worked in the area for more than a decade and knows his fellow business owners well. He believed they were all in the same position, forced to fend for themselves.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeirut was destroyed. I don\u2019t want to remember anything, I don\u2019t want to be traumatised again. But everything after August 4 was changed. We are different people. They [the authorities] killed the fear inside us.\u201d<\/p>\n

William Dobson, co-owner of Aaliya\u2019s Books: <\/p>\n

William Dobson, who was co-owner of the much-loved Aaliya\u2019s Books in Gemmayzeh, can tell you the rough financial cost the bookshop and cafe incurred when the Beirut blast came crashing through its doors and windows.<\/p>\n

In the aftermath, Aaliya\u2019s received \u00a335,000 ($46,200) in donations from a crowdfunding campaign organised by a former customer based in the UK, $7,500 from a British government initiative that helped replenish its stock of books and a few thousand dollars from an insurance policy \u2212 the insurance company’s own offices were badly damaged in the explosion. <\/p>\n

This was balanced against costs of about $100,000 \u2212 both for refurbishing Aaliya\u2019s and the impact of Covid-19 on business. <\/p>\n

But Mr Dobson says the greatest cost in many ways was the emotional toll from the unrelenting uncertainty brought by the explosion, Lebanon\u2019s economic crises, the pandemic and Israel\u2019s war in the country.<\/p>\n

Aaliya’s managed to survive almost all of these, but finally closed in December 2024, as the impact of Israel’s war against Hezbollah became just too much. <\/p>\n

\u201cEven post-explosion and post-recovery, what you end up losing is ambition,\u201d said Mr Dobson.<\/p>\n

\u201cAmbition was lost, not just in terms of the people who were working for us and who saw less of a future for themselves, but also, I think, for us. We felt less ambitious in what we were able to achieve and we felt less confident in the thing that we were doing.\u201d <\/p>\n

Aaliya\u2019s was set up in 2016 to be something new \u2212 a fresh space that allowed people to talk and express themselves, \u201cnot driven by profit but driven by value\u201d. <\/p>\n

Mr Dobson said he wanted the bookshop to be somewhere where people could thrive; where they could \u201cstart off as a busboy and become a manager\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you\u2019re trying to do something and you think you\u2019re making a difference and you see the differences that you are making. You\u2019re seeing people read, you\u2019re seeing people coming to storytelling nights,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Mr Dobson recalled when Aaliya\u2019s first opened, 300 people came to storytelling event by a collective called Cliffhangers. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was kind of indicative of something more compelling, that there was a yearning for spaces like this in the city and at a specific moment in time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd that became harder to justify after the explosion. Because it almost felt like, what\u2019s the point in making micro-improvements when you can see every single one of those improvements disintegrate \u2212 both literally and figuratively \u2212 in the space of 30 seconds.\u201d<\/p>\n

Deena Kamel contributed to this report <\/p>\n

HIV on the rise in the region<\/p>\n

A 2019 United Nations special analysis on Aids reveals 37 per cent of new HIV infections in the Mena region are from people injecting drugs.<\/p>\n

New HIV infections have also risen by 29 per cent in western Europe and Asia, and by 7 per cent in Latin America, but declined elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Egypt has shown the highest increase in recorded cases of HIV since 2010, up by 196 per cent.<\/p>\n

Access to HIV testing, treatment and care in the region is well below the global average.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Few statistics have been published on the number of cases in\u00a0the UAE, although a UNAIDS report said 1.5 per cent of the prison population has the virus.<\/p>\n

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pocketsEngland-South Africa Test series<\/p>\n

1st Test England win by 211 runs at Lord’s, London<\/p>\n

2nd Test South Africa win by 340 runs at Trent Bridge, Nottingham<\/p>\n

3rd Test\u00a0July 27-31 at The Oval, London<\/p>\n

4th Test\u00a0August 4-8 at Old Trafford, Manchester<\/p>\n

Dhadak 2<\/p>\n

Director: Shazia Iqbal<\/p>\n

Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri\u00a0<\/p>\n

Rating: 1\/5<\/p>\n

DUBAI%20BLING%3A%20EPISODE%201<\/p>\n

%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreator%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENetflix%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKris%20Fade%2C%20Ebraheem%20Al%20Samadi%2C%20Zeina%20Khoury%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A<\/p>\n

Benefits of first-time home buyers’ scheme
\nPriority access to new homes from participating developers
\nDiscounts on sales price of off-plan units
\nFlexible payment plans from developers
\nMortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
\nDLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Victims of the Beirut port blast say they have not received promised insurance payouts and still await accountability…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":42571,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[5647,45,14219,49,48,46,8723,2225,1320],"class_list":["post-42570","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-economy","tag-beirut","tag-business","tag-business-team","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-economy","tag-lebanon","tag-standard","tag-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42570","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42570"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42570\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42570"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42570"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42570"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}