A campaign by United States officials to link the deadly explosion of improperly stored ammonium nitrate in the port in Lebanon’s capital Beirut in August to Hizbullah via allegations the group had stockpiled the explosive precursor around Europe has been downplayed by multiple security sources around the EU that spoke with Janes on condition of anonymity.
The blast, which destroyed the port and caused extensive property damage across much of Beirut on 4 August, was widely blamed on the improper storage of massive amounts of ammonium nitrate seized from an impounded cargo ship in 2014. However, the US Department of State’s Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Nathan Sales, accused Hizbullah of stockpiling the chemical in caches across Europe. Speaking via video to the American Jewish Committee, a US-based advocacy group, on 17 September, Sales stated, “Since 2012, Hezbollah [sic] has established caches of ammonium nitrate throughout Europe”. He added: “I can reveal that such caches have been moved through Belgium to France, Greece, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland. I can also reveal that significant ammonium nitrate caches have been discovered or destroyed in France, Greece, and Italy.”
An aerial view, taken on 21 August 2020, of the aftermath of the Beirut port explosion on 4 August, showing the crater that occupies the space of the warehouse where the initial fire broke out and the ammonium nitrate was stored. (Haytham Al Achkar/Getty Images)
European reaction
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