Lebanon's Prime Minister Hassan Diab speaks during a news conference at the government palace. (File photo: Reuters)
The Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab and several ministers are considering submitting a joint resignation following the deadly Beirut port explosion on August 4, local newspaper An-Nahar reported on Sunday.
The report came after six members of the Lebanese parliament and one Cabinet minister resigned earlier.
Lebanon’s Minister of Information Manal Abdel Samad submitted her resignation on Sunday following the blast and public outcry over the government’s response to the disaster.
“After the enormous Beirut catastrophe, I announce my resignation from government,” she said in a television statement, apologizing to the Lebanese public for failing them.
Her announcement was followed by the resignation of MP Neamat Efrem from the House of Representatives, state news agency the National News Agency (NNA) reported.
At least 158 people were killed and more than 6,000 others were injured in the capital on Tuesday when a warehouse storing 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate exploded after catching on fire.
The explosion had destroyed entire buildings and shattered windows, leaving around 300,000 people in Beirut homeless.
The explosion in #Beirut’s port killed over 158 people, injured over 6,000, and displaced more than 300,000. New footage in 4K shows how it unfolded in slow motion, ravaging buildings as far as 10 km away and sparking mass anti-government protests.https://t.co/1V61mqo7Am pic.twitter.com/ja6RC24mqj
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) August 9, 2020
Read more:
Lebanon’s information minister, six MPs resign following Beirut explosion
Beirut would be ‘erased’ had full chemical load exploded, bulk likely stolen: Expert
Lebanon’s Maronite Patriarch urges govt to resign, calls for early elections
