His Excellency
Mr. António Guterres
Secretary-General of the United Nations
By His Excellency
Mr. Jan Kubis
The Representative of the United Nations in Lebanon
Your Excellency,
We, the victims of the Beirut Port massacre that took place on August 4, 2020, who have lost family members, loved ones, and have suffered physical, material, and psychological damages, present to your Excellency this letter, citing the following:
- In the late afternoon of August 4, 2020, the tragedy of the Beirut port transpired, killing more than 180 people of different nationalities, injuring 6000 people, and devastating a large part of Beirut. The explosion has resulted in gross damages to an already faltering economy.
- It has been proven that the explosive materials entered Beirut in /2013/ under suspicious circumstances, for ambiguous purposes that have yet to be determined. Also, it has been proven that Lebanese authorities had prior knowledge of the explosive materials and had neither destroyed nor re-exported them.
- The causes of the explosion remain vague and unresolved, with the Lebanese authorities being incapable of uncovering them. They are also confused about how to handle the investigation of this explosion.
Your Excellency,
All we are asking for is JUSTICE, to ensure that this crime will be investigated in a transparent, professional, fair, and impartial manner. We only ask that those responsible be duly prosecuted and punished, keeping in mind that the investigation deal with how and why the explosive materials were brought into the port of Beirut? Who were the beneficiaries? and why it remained in the port for six long years? It must also probe what caused the explosion, how it happened, and who is directly and indirectly responsible for its occurrence, how the authorities reacted and handled its aftermath, and any other detail that the public must know concerning this horrific crime.
In addition, it is impossible to rely on a local investigation conducted by the political, judicial, and administrative authorities in Lebanon, since most of them are at the very least accused of being complicit in negligence. Lebanese authorities have also proven to consistently fail at revealing the truth behind every significant crime in the country.
And it is thus evident:
- That what happened on August 4 /2020 / constitutes an INTERNATIONAL CRIME
- That Lebanese authorities are not qualified to pursue investigations, due to their negligence and corruption, as well as dereliction of duty and ineptitude in dealing with this tragedy.
- An independent investigation that is adept at uncovering the truth and punishing perpetrators is indispensable to justice.
Moreover, according to the Charter of the United Nations, especially Article 34 thereof,
We ask your Excellency to take the immediate and necessary measures that will result in the appointment of an international fact-finding committee, consisting of international specialized experts whose mission will be to come to Lebanon as soon as possible. This committee will then launch an investigation into the explosion that shook the Lebanese capital on August 4, 2020 and convey to you its findings to prosecute the perpetrators of this horrendous crime.
Sincerely and Respectfully,