UNIFIL Says Almost 50 Peacekeepers Injured In Powerful Blast In Lebanon's Beirut

BEIRUT (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 05th August, 2020) Forty-eight employees of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) were injured after a massive explosion that occurred in the port of Beirut, according to UNIFIL spokesman Farhan Haq.

Following the blast, which occurred on Tuesday evening, Beirut's governor said that half of the city's buildings were damaged, and hospitals were overcrowded due to a large number of injured people.

"Forty-eight UN staff workers were injured, [as well as] 27 members of their families and three guests," Haq told the Al Jazeera broadcaster.

Prime Minister Hassan Diab said on Tuesday that the blast had been caused by improper storage of 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate in the port of Beirut.

As of now, the death toll from the powerful blast may be around 100 people, Lebanese Red Cross Secretary General George Kettaneh said. The total number of those injured now stands at over 4,000.

A large number of the world's countries, including Lebanon's middle East neighbors, have already offered their assistance to Beirut and expressed their condolences. The World Health Organization, in turn, said that it has sent medical supplies and surgical kits to treat victims of the deadly blast.

The Lebanese government has declared a three-day mourning for the victims of the tragedy beginning from Wednesday.