Pope urges ‘truth, justice’ over Beirut port blast after meeting bereaved families

Pope Francis called Monday for 'truth and justice' over the catastrophic explosion at Beirut's port four years ago, and lamented Lebanon was 'paying a price' for the war in the Middle East. He was speaking as he met victims of the August 4, 2020 blast, one of the world's biggest non-nuclear explosions, at the Vatican. Nobody has been held responsible for the blast, which killed more than 220 people, injured at least 6,500 and devastated swathes of the capital. 'Together with you, I ask for truth and justice, which has not arrived,' he told the closed-door meeting, according to the Vatican. 'All of us know that the issues are complex and difficult, and that opposing powers and interests make their influence felt. Yet truth and justice must prevail over all else. 'Four years have now gone by. The Lebanese people, and you above all, have a right to words and actions that manifest responsibility and transparency.' The pontiff also said that Lebanon was 'paying a price' for the war in the Middle East, the da y after Israel launched air strikes into the country, which it said destroyed 'thousands' of Hezbollah rocket launchers. He lamented seeing 'so many innocent people dying' because of the war in Israel and the Palestinian territories, 'for which Lebanon is paying a price'. The Israeli military said around 100 of its fighter jets had struck more than 270 targets, '90 percent' of which 'were short-range rockets aimed at northern Israel'. Hezbollah denied that thousands of launchers had been destroyed or that Israel had thwarted a larger attack. It insisted it had been able to deliver a drone and rocket barrage of its own. The result was perhaps the biggest exchange of fire in 10 months of a war which began with a Hamas attack launched from Gaza and has triggered both new violence on the Lebanon-Israel border and fears of a broader conflagration in the Middle East. Source: National News Agency - Lebanon