Blast News

Winter rains in Beirut finish off blast-ravaged homes

By AFP

Beirut - Norma Mnassakh was leaving her apartment in the Lebanese capital when a cloud of dust suddenly billowed from the Ottoman-era building next door.

Months after Beirut blast, cinematic tributes stream online

By AFP

Beirut - A distressed son looks for his father, a lazy beach day ends in tragedy: Lebanese can now stream short films about this summer's devastating port blast -- but some say it's just too soon.

At least seven killed in blast at Pakistan religious school

By AFP

Peshawar - At least seven students were killed and scores more wounded Tuesday in a bomb attack on a Koran study class at a religious school in northwestern Pakistan, officials said.

At least seven killed in blast at Pakistan religious school

By AFP

Peshawar - At least seven students were killed and scores more wounded Tuesday in a bomb attack on a Koran study class at a religious school in northwestern Pakistan, officials said.

Lebanese artists in overdrive to restore Beirut's beauty

By AFP

Beirut - Lebanese stained glass artist Maya Husseini had hoped to retire after decades spent designing colourful windows, but she has been flooded with work since the blast that ripped through Beirut.

Terrified mothers-to-be adjust after Beirut blast

By AFP

Beirut - Seven months ago, Lebanese mother-to-be Rana Mneimneh was ecstatic she was pregnant, but after a massive explosion at Beirut's port, she lives in constant fear for her baby girl.

Roadside bomb kills 14 civilians in Afghanistan

By AFP

Kabul - At least 14 civilians, including women and children, were killed Tuesday by a roadside bomb in central Afghanistan, officials said, as violence continues despite peace talks between the Taliban and Afghan government.

Macron accuses Lebanon leaders of 'betrayal' over govt failure

By AFP

Paris - French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday upped the pressure on Lebanon's leaders to form a government in the wake of the Beirut port blast, saying their lack of progress represented a "collective betrayal".

Beirut businesses crowdfund to rebuild after blast

By AFP

Beirut - Standing in the gutted ruins of her bar destroyed by Beirut's massive port blast, Lebanese entrepreneur Gizelle Hassoun said she hopes crowdfunding can help save her business from the rubble.

In blast-hit Beirut, Armenian elders determined to stay

By AFP

Beirut - Beirut resident Vany Bandikian once dreamt of travelling outside Lebanon, but after a massive explosion wrecked her neighbourhood, all she wants is to stay in the home her father built.

After Lebanon blast, future lawsuits pile up against the state

By AFP

Beirut - Elie Hasrouty, who lost his father to the August 4 Beirut port blast, is one of at least 1,228 grieving Lebanese preparing to file a lawsuit against the state.

Dockside dealings: smuggling, bribery and tax evasion at Beirut port

By AFP

Beirut - The huge explosion at Beirut's port last month laid bare a dockside institution riddled with graft which critics say is a microcosm of a corrupt Lebanese state.

Paris city hall charged over deadly 2019 gas explosion

By AFP

Paris - The Paris city hall has been charged with involuntary manslaughter over a massive gas explosion in the French capital last year that killed four people, including two firefighters, judicial sources said Tuesday.

Afghanistan VP lightly wounded in deadly Kabul blast

By AFP

Kabul - Afghanistan's vice president Amrullah Saleh sustained minor injuries Wednesday when an explosion that targeted his convoy killed at least 10 people, as government-backed negotiators and the Taliban prepared to meet in Doha for long-delayed talks.

Blast in Kabul targets Afghan VP Saleh's convoy: officials

By AFP

Kabul - At least two people were killed and a dozen more wounded in an explosion targeting the convoy of Afghanistan's vice president Amrullah Saleh in central Kabul early Wednesday, officials said.

From window to jug: Lebanese recycle glass from Beirut blast

By AFP

Tripoli - Standing in a pile of broken glass in northern Lebanon, a man heaved shovel-loads of shards -- retrieved from Beirut after the massive explosion at its port -- into a red-hot furnace.

'No sign of life' in search for Beirut blast survivor

By AFP

Beirut - Rescue workers said Saturday there was no longer any sign of life in a collapsed Beirut building, dashing hopes raised by sensor readings showing a pulse beneath the rubble from last month's blast.

'Pulse' sparks hunt for survivors one month after Beirut blast

By AFP

Beirut - Rescuers resumed a search Friday for possible survivors under rubble in Beirut, buoyed by faint hopes of a miracle a month after a monster blast ripped through the city's port.

Search resumes for possible Beirut blast survivor after pulse detected

By AFP

Beirut - Emergency crews scoured rubble Friday for a possible survivor in Beirut after the detection of a pulse drew crowds hopeful of a miracle one month on from a devastating explosion.

Blast-hit Beirut begins timid recovery

By AFP

Beirut - In a blast-damaged tailor shop in the Lebanese capital, Claudette is back at work sewing the hem of an orange skirt as rescue teams dig nearby.

Lebanon PM designate pledges to form 'expert govt' in record time

By AFP

Beirut - Lebanon's prime minister designate Mustapha Adib pledged to form a 'government of experts' to drive desperately needed reforms in the disaster-hit and economically ailing country.

Lebanon PM designate bids to form crisis cabinet within two weeks

By AFP

Beirut - Lebanon's prime minister designate was to kick off talks Wednesday on forming a crisis government within two weeks to begin enacting desperately needed reforms in the disaster-hit country.

Macron in high-stakes Lebanon reform drive

By AFP

Beirut - French President Emmanuel Macron pressed his "risky" drive for political change in Lebanon Tuesday, as the former French mandate marked its centenary while teetering on the brink of the abyss.

Lebanon designates new PM as Macron visits

By AFP

Beirut - Lebanon's under-fire political leaders Monday designated a new prime minister, the diplomat Mustapha Adib, to tackle the country's deep political and economic crisis, hours before French President Emmanuel Macron was due to visit.

Eiffel Tower of debris cleared from Beirut port

By AFP

Beirut - French and Lebanese soldiers cleared 8,000 tonnes of steel and concrete equivalent to the weight of the Eiffel Tower from Beirut port which was devastated by a monster blast, an officer said Wednesday.

After Beirut blast, foreign workers beg to go home

By AFP

Beirut - After struggling first through Lebanon's economic crisis and then the coronavirus pandemic, Ethiopian worker Tarik Kebeda said the deadly blast that ripped through her Beirut home was the final straw.

Lebanon's Beirut blast shattered taboos around Hezbollah

By AFP

Beirut - Hezbollah's emphatic defence of the political status quo in Lebanon has exposed it since the deadly Beirut blast to levels of public contempt and anger it was once shielded from.

After port disaster, Lebanese brace for virus lockdown

By AFP

Beirut - Still reeling from a deadly port blast that ravaged their Beirut homes and businesses, Lebanese wearily braced themselves for a new coronavirus lockdown Friday."What now? On top of this disaster, a coronavirus catastrophe?

'Murder attempt': Lebanon protest wounds add to blast woes

By AFP

Beirut - Firas and Zeina survived Beirut's port explosion unscathed but still sustained severe injuries -- not in the disaster itself but in the heavy-handed crackdown on the street protests that followed.

'That's it?' Drained Lebanese shrug off Hariri verdict

By AFP

Beirut - Worn down by economic crisis and traumatised by Beirut's monster blast, the Rafic Hariri murder verdict after a 15-year wait for "the truth" came as an anti-climax for despondent Lebanese.