By: Shoshana Bryen – Newsweek; newsweek.com
It was hard to miss the videos of the double explosion in Beirut. The first one was really big; the second was eye-poppingly enormous! And in horrific color. The damage was truly terrible, and the casualty count is rising. So, first, it should be said that thoughts and prayers should be with the people of Beirut.
But it created a conundrum for the Hezbollah-dominated Lebanese government. If it claimed the damage was done by Israel, it would be admitting that Israel could target the country with impunity. Which it can, but that is not something Hezbollah wants to admit because it would create pressure for a military response—a war it cannot win. In addition, it would be admitting that Hezbollah—a proxy of Iran—was storing rockets, missiles and rocket fuel in the middle of capital of Lebanon. So, first the government said the warehouse near the waterfront was a “fireworks factory” that had exploded. Then they said it was a wheat storage silo.
Finally, Lebanese Interior Minister Mohammed Fahmi admitted to the presence of highly explosive materials at the port, saying, “We have to wait for investigations to know the cause of the explosion, but preliminary explanation indicates materials seized years ago exploded in the Beirut Port warehouse.”