Intelligence agencies had warned the Lebanese prime minister a month before the explosion at the port. So in an investigation The Times reveals the background.
President Aoun is under pressure because some documents show that the Lebanese Prime Minister and the entire government had been warned, at least two weeks before, of the dangers at the port of Beirut in reference to the ammonium nitrate stored in hangar no. 12.
The prime minister last Monday Hassan Diab and his cabinet resigned as the president Aoun he remained in office saying that the presidency is not responsible for managing the port and that he had ordered the security agencies to "do what was necessary" to deal with that ammonium nitrate.
Despite the resignation of Prime Minister Diab, the demonstrators are also demanding the heads of the other oligarchs still in power. Sixty-year-old Diab was appointed in January, before that he was a university professor. Even President Aoun and Nabih Berri, the president of parliament, have never had a strong consensus because they represent the "sectarian" power born after the civil war of 1975-90 for public opinion.
President Aoun, 85, was army chief of staff during the war and represents Lebanon's largest Christian-led Maronite party.
The president of parliament, Nabih Berri, 82 years old, president for 30 years, guide Charity, a Shiite party born as a political force during the civil war, linked to Hezbollah, the armed militia supported by Iran and included in the list of terrorist groups by the US.
The population has been taking to the streets for days, furiously chanting the same slogan: “They must all go home”.
The blast, which left a huge crater in the docks of the harbor, destroyed windows more than five miles away. At first, many residents feared that the explosion was caused by an Israeli bomb or air raid.
After a few hours it was understood that everything was caused by the 2.750 tons of ammonium nitrate seized from a Russian-owned ship flying the Moldovan flag in 2013. It was headed for Mozambique but was blocked in Lebanon due to problems with the payment of transit taxes. . Many analysts argue that the real destination of the danger loaded by the Moldovan ship Rhosus has always been Beirut, that of Mozambique was just an artfully made hype.
Ammonium nitrate is used both as a fertilizer but also as an explosive, often used by terrorists. Numerous documents have shown that many people in the port and further up the chain of command knew that the ammonium nitrate concentration stored at hangar No. 12 was very dangerous. Despite the various reports, no one has lifted a finger.
According to some local news and television agencies, a judicial investigation called for the protection of ammonium nitrate to prevent it from being used for terrorist attacks.
Prime Minister Diab's office said it had forwarded these documents to the Supreme Defense Council. Mr. Aoun initially stated that the explosion may have been triggered by "foreign forces", the reference was Israel but indirectly also Hezbollah.
Experts to date claim that the explosion occurred following a fire. US intelligence sources argue, however, that the incident may be linked to terrorist activities. The Americans also argue that Hezbollah does not usually store its explosives in one place, but in many different and small quantities. Then they would have ammonium nitrate for explosives in small quantities, probably also partially removed from hangar no. 12.
Given the "dangerous" intertwining in Beirut, between state and foreign entities, perhaps it is better that the truth is never revealed because it could really be "detonating" for the entire region.