Six years after Beirut blast, families fight for truth

On August 4, 2020, a catastrophic explosion at Beirut's port fundamentally altered the Lebanese capital. The detonation, triggered by the ignition of 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate stored without proper safety measures, resulted in at least 218 deaths, thousands of injuries, and widespread destruction across entire neighbourhoods. The incident ranks among the largest non-nuclear explosions documented in contemporary history.

Six years have passed, yet the tragedy continues to define the lives of survivors and bereaved families. Grieving relatives have engaged in sustained legal efforts to compel accountability from Lebanon's entrenched political system. Among those killed were Sahar Fares, the Beirut Fire Brigade's first female operational firefighter, and Joe Noun, who responded to a fire at the port's Hangar 12 minutes before the explosion. Their red helmets remain displayed at the fire station as a testament to their sacrifice.

From this devastation emerged an unexpected human connection. William Noun, Joe's brother, and Maria Fares, Sahar's sister, united by shared grief and collective demands for justice, married three years after the blast. They have since had two children, whom they named Joe and Sahar. William acknowledged to Al Jazeera that while the children have restored hope to their family, they cannot replace those lost, as each person possesses an irreplaceable presence.

The explosion claimed victims across all age groups. Three-year-old Alexandra Naggear died from injuries sustained when the shockwave destroyed her family's home in the Mar Mikhael neighbourhood. Her father carried her through the rubble, and the image became a global symbol of childhood stolen by the disaster. For the Naggear family and hundreds of others, the pursuit of truth about who abandoned the explosives at the port remains paramount.

Investigations established that the ammonium nitrate arrived aboard a Moldovan-flagged vessel in 2013, and that numerous senior officials possessed knowledge of the hazard yet took no preventive action. Experts attribute this negligence to a systemic culture of impunity that emerged following Lebanon's civil war's conclusion in 1990, when armed faction leaders transitioned into political roles and insulated themselves from legal consequences. The initial lead investigator, Judge Fadi Sawan, was removed from the case after summoning prominent politicians for questioning, further demonstrating the obstacles families face in securing accountability.