How the Beirut Explosion Will Worsen Lebanon’s Crises

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Lebanon is no stranger to turmoil and devastation. The small country straddles the geopolitical fault lines of the Middle East and endured a 15-year civil war that ended in 1990. It’s also notorious for graft and mismanagement. In the latest blow, a massive blast ripped through the port in its capital, Beirut, on Aug. 4, killing more than 170 people, injuring thousands more and damaging buildings across the city. Officials have said it was caused by the detonation of a 2,750-ton stockpile of ammonium nitrate stored there, equal to 1,800 tons of TNT. The tragedy piled yet another layer of hardship on a country already reeling from its worst financial crisis in decades and struggling to contain a burgeoning coronavirus outbreak.