Beirut explosion: Arab League ready to provide aid to Lebanon, says Secretary-General

The Arab League is ready to provide Lebanon with the aid it needs to deal with the impact of the deadly Beirut port blast that shook the capital, Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit said during a press conference on Saturday.

The organization is prepared to partake in a transparent investigation to determine the cause of the explosion that killed over 150 people and injured more than 5,000 others on August 4, Aboul Gheit said.

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The Secretary-General had arrived in the Lebanese capital early on Saturday and met with President Michel Aoun to discuss the ongoing situation.

Aboul Gheit said he would be joining the international aid conference organized by France that will be held on Sunday.

The Lebanese people are strong despite the horrific disaster they experienced, he added.

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Lebanon had already been suffering from an unprecedented economic crisis, heightened by the coronavirus pandemic, when the disaster happened.

Hundreds of thousands were left homeless across the capital when the explosion caused entire buildings to collapse and glass to shatter all over the streets.

The cause of the explosion in Beirut is still under investigation but initial reports indicated that 2,750 tonnes of the industrial chemical ammonium nitrate were stored in the warehouse that blew up.