to human stories with political and economic tension writing down be a hope to propose a country to define the future. august on i just i this is al jazeera ah hello and welcome. i'm pete adobe. you're watching the news i live from coming up in the next 60 minutes. a painful reminder, the 11 on port explosion that took people lives apart exactly a year ago today. president some blast victims,

not remember the day that made calls for answers and accountability. also in this program, a fight against constant flare ups, the emergency crew struggling to contain some of the worst wildfires in turkey. history. also the taliban says it was behind a car bombing in the afghan defense ministers home and threatens. there will be more time, how much would the latest lympics and use the workforce keep tumbling on the track in tokyo, women 400 meter hurdle time at the latest to go on . we begin this news in lebanon, where people are marking exactly a years since one of the world's biggest ever known nuclear explosions took place. changing a country in the process. more than 200 people were killed. 6 and a half 1000 were injured. when a fire ignited

a stockpile of ammonium nitrate at the port of beirut, a year has passed, and people living in the capital are still demanding answers. the lebanese will therapies have been criticized for blocking age. additional investigation. commemorations and tributes have been taking place, including one by some of the security forces, who were 1st on the scene after the blast, mourners and protest as have also been gathering voicing their anger and their sorrow. these are life shots now of the memorial sites at the bay root port area 15 o 7, g m t hours, marking the exact time the exact minute of the blast. we will of course, keep a close eye on the tribute some of the events taking place there throughout this news. i was in a harder, as our correspondents who covered the aftermath of explosion a year ago. she's covering what's going on today for us. so, you know, give us a sense of what we can expect over the coming 60 minutes. so, so well, it's

a national day of mourning. the lebanese are remembering one of the most traumatic experiences in this country's history. and this country has had the dark past. the civil war, military innovations, political assassination bombings. but this was different. you hear stories of survival, you hear stories of tragedy. you talk to anybody in the city and everybody thought that the time that this explosion happens outside their home. so now they're gathering outside the site of the blast in a few minutes, they're going to be marking the exact minutes when that explosion happens. in fact, there were 2 explosions, a smaller one before the larger blast, the blast that center pressure wave that really tore through neighborhoods destroyed neighborhoods, destroyed homes, and destroyed people's lives. more than 200 people were killed. i can't give you the exact number, simply because the authorities don't have a final death toll tally. some people say 217 other say 218. and this goes to show

you many lebanese will tell you how the officials really are, are in different other people who are still missing. some of the victims were undocumented foreign workers, so nobody knows about their faith. thousands of people were injured, many of them physically disabled. there are so much anger because especially when you speak to the families of the victims, they say, why did my son's author, husband, wife, why did they have to die for nothing? because many people see this really a man made a tragedy. they came out today to commemorate their loved ones, but also to demand for just just the demand accountability and demand. answers peter, the investigation has pretty much stalled. who is it that supposed to be driving that? well, there is a judge, one man show a judge, the lead investigator in this court. the explosion, the previous judge was removed,

due to a politician said that he was his bias because his house was damaged and they flows . and now this judge, the new judge wants to start prosecuting suspects. he has issued a list of suspects officials from across the political and security spectrum from the security establishment, former current officials, but he can't start the formal questioning on pills or immunities are listed. he's facing a fierce political backlash. even though we've heard officials over the past few days saying that we're ready to lift immunities, but no action has been taken. so that's judge really is up against a very powerful political and security establishment which is just not cooperating . and this is why the, the families say we are behind you, they're actually supporting this judge and saying that we will continue to put pressure over the year. they've taken to the streets over the past year. they've even cost with security forces outside the home says the suspects, but like i said,

they're up against very powerful politicians and in fact, just this was and that's a national catastrophe. and yes, i think this needs to be pointed out there just a few 1000 people here. so there are still some lebanese who continues to support those in power. i mean, just look at the 4th behind you, the silos that got the silos that fans out as a memory, memory of a tragedy that continues to haunt the people of the capital, but still no accountability and no answer. we are approaching were less than a minutes away from the exact time when that explosion took place in a so briefly do lebanese leaders not feel that they owe the people of beirut, the truth of what happened well, when you ask them that they said, of course, it takes time, it takes time for the investigation needs to run a course,

but people really see it differently. it's just, it wasn't just the ports explosion. there have been political assassination over the years and there's never been accountability. in fact, there's never been investigations and never been trials and never been arrest any arrest from santa stay with us. please do 7 minutes past 315 o 7, g m t a year ago was the name of the of us. i will call them some of that may be that you see at a day, mega lunch, eat of all isaac for her. now as my hands are roof, i will really alexander, up all,

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said about the sooner the better, if not a good he said in the future, they will young well, but sunny will be mac in here. i'm in the, you're watching the 0 and you, with the coverage of memorial people remembering and of course what happened exactly a year ago when the ammonium nitrate igniting in the whole area. thousands of people have made their way to that, not the media tearing. they marched towards the pool. they're going this thing to you is a pres speeches that off of what we've just been on. but the observer, which was the name of all the victims being read out the, the, followed by one in a silence and thought we want our rights, the rights of the martyrs and the victims. their immunities are not more dear than the blood of the marxist. and the victory asked me, those were the words today of one relative and i were talking about one of the

victim paid the ultimate price a year ago. today, if you've been following the story, of course you'll, you'll know that there are some so many more questions than answers exactly. 12 months on there was a human rights watch report for them just earlier this week, concluding that there was strong evidence to suggest that some officials knew in a gray area about what was happening with that storage of ammonium nitrate and the lethal potential that it had so we're talking to a harder correspondent who covered the explosion covering what's going on there for us today. susanna, so many questions and virtually no proper answers. yes, people want to know free for what caused the fire that is believed to have triggered the block. there are 3 theories that the judge has since talked about the

possibility of an accident because it was repair, work is warehouse 12 or whether or not this was intentional because there was really a lot of attention on the shipment of ammonium nitrate in the few months in the lead up to that explosion, the st security issuing a report, sending it to the president, sending it to the caretaker, prime minister, a judge ordering repair work. so maybe somebody, this was intentional. somebody trying to hide evidence and that there was a 3rd rockets attack, but that has been counted following the help of french forensic investigators. they tested the water samples and the samples people also want to know who own the shipment. the official narrative is that the ship made an unscheduled stop and this was on its place. and both be many lawyer looked at documents investigative journalists. what they have been telling us is that it seems that that shipment was intended to, to come to a ruth. they have found connections, of course, there are still no conclusions. and then there's the 3rd question,

whether or not the whole shipment, $2750.00 pounds was inside the warehouse at the time of the explosion. some experts as well as the f b i report suggests that only 500 tons they quoted that day. now whether or not the rest was blown out to sea or just didn't explode. they haven't concluded that. but again, investigative journalists, who i've done more work than the authorities in this case, have spoken to people who offloaded the ship and what they've been telling me is that a, please? 1950 times. 1950 bucks were taken away back in 2014 and not place in the warehouse. so many, many questions about surrounding the shipments of ammonium nitrate. who owns it? a lot of information, a lot of documents has since emerge. and like i said, investigative journalists providing more answers and sources, and this is why people here take there. immunity must be listed, the officials must be held to account. in fact, you know, most of them now they're heading to the homes of the suspects names by the judge.

other there are planning protests outside the home suspect like they've done in the house. when the last happens and one remembers, i mean you and i have many conversations on the news out on this channel as well on our listens, that the country and the people of the city had lived throughs, decades of alleged corruption, the economy is a flat lining anyway, and then this exclusion happened so many people lost their lives. so much of a root was utterly ruined. this blast was so big, it was felt in cyprus, a long, long way away. and then what happened? the political process kind of descended into not just locked out and meltdown, but there was this kind of lack of power and combined with a lack of cooperation on the part of the politicians almost i remember saying that living on last so much a way all ready there was little yes,

the economy has started to collapse the corona virus to make the lockdown, making life very, very difficult for people, the lira the star test to the value. but since everybody thought that lebanon reached the bottom, but since then, the situation has just gotten worse. the economy has collapsed the layer of the local currency loss, 95 percent of its value. the world food program is feeding one in every live in the country. and up to more than a 1000000 refugees who have been in the cold. there is a sale made a cushion buying for our government instead of forming a government to, to reform in order for the international community. so on least much needed assistance. we heard the french president mcroy earlier today. he hopes that in

a conference for 11 on he said there will be no blank checks. the international community will not help this country will not help the politicians unless they start fighting corruption unless they start infecting a reform. so this is not just about accounts demanding accountability and trusted people want their lives to improve as well. it's becoming very difficult even to find medicine. you just can't find medicine in loveland on. there's a diesel choice. there's a few shortage people of purchasing power has low value and the majority of the people here earn in the local currency. and officials have been warning of a social inflows, but at the same time, they're doing nothing about it. like i said, they are engaged in a war, a power struggle on who's going to control the china cabinet with their eyes on the upcoming parliamentary elections next year. what they're counting now is so revolution, revolution, they're calling for a new leadership. this is, this has been a call that has been made since october 2019, but they haven't been able to topple those in power. and i says this is the place

to buy that and those empower still have support people. 6 in it for the moment. thank you so much. you can see a special program by xena and the team there in beirut on what happened exactly a year ago about disaster barrett search for answers here on out here on wednesday at 2330 hours g m t. you can also watch the program be our website, amazon dot com, and also be our youtube channel to at will state with those unfolding events in and around the beirut port area. we'll talk to paula jacoby him. she's for me, 11. he's parliamentarian her resigned following the port blast last year. she joins us from beirut. paula, you could be in such a difficult day for so many people, understandably, can you just share with us your thoughts at this time? well, a year ago it was a big, it's a real explosion to everyone was saw. but after one year it's now is the real

pain and the real anger. because despite the fact that the whole world talks about this explosion, we can see that today there is impunity in love, not just like all the other crimes, but this crime difference. this crime is like nothing we've seen before. described to the whole city our capital. we've seen the loss of those who lost their life, but the loss that you don't see is much, much bigger. so what i can tell you that today, until today, the corrupt and the very strong and they're trying to see how they can survive, how they can keep their immune news. and we can see from the other side beneath people that is telling the words we have nothing to do with them. we hate them. we know that you are living now, you know, in a put in a political clumsy and that's only a financial team. so,

the lebanon today is totally different than what it was in 2018 then what it was also after the explosion more no more people are aware. they cannot continue with this corruption to routing the country. that seems to me to be so many interlocking aspects to this. if we can just break it down over the next couple of minutes. what's gone wrong with the criminal investigation? and why has that not provided either somebody or some people being charged, or at least a statement of intent when it comes to where the investigation is heading next? let me try to explain this for those who are not here beneath and who are watching us. this country is under the rule of law and under the rule of other political parties who are fun still has been not even those who pretend that they

are fighting the lat somehow. now they need this umbrella to, to stay in power because people are saying, we don't want all of you. they're not the thing we don't want. they're saying we don't want all of you all the political god. so now every, every political party is finding refute in the so called strong party, which is the party alleged of god. so what's happening in that? but i know it's happened in the port. we all know they knew everything about it, and they are the one to, you know, bring this explosive vis 6. those is the ammonium nitrate. they kept there for years. they were using they were somehow trafficking nitrate somewhere. we don't know to syria. we don't know where exactly what we know is that

they have control over. ringback the for the baby. so how could they, again weigh, was this crime? they cannot and that's why they are holding onto the immunities. they are trying to do everything possible to stop the investigation. and they are talking politically right now, the judge to be taught who is our hero and hope they are attacking him every day, trying to find the leverage over him, trying to say that his investigation is a political one. and they said the same about the other judge, 5 you so want, who was going the same direction. and they had to stop him from investigating using a very stupid argument saying that his glotts and his house was broken during the explosion. so they stopped the 1st judge after months of investigation and now the other judge, they don't want to continue the investigation because obviously,

obviously everything leads to this corrupt and then go to the country to it's nice and they're still continuing to see how they can stop the blood of each and every liberties. and stay in power. only plant ok pull. i'm going to have to and forgive me for this kind of condition, a little bit of what you've just said in that fulsome answer. because we don't know . and nobody will know if everyone in inverted commas knew about what was going on with the storage of that ammonium nitrate in the port area. presumably we will know as a fact, as a legal fact, once the criminal investigation concludes, but you resigned as a politician. so you wanted to clearly understand to be, i guess, to be seen, to be on the right side of history. what does this tell us about your countries?

politicians? i guess they could be criticized for only being interested in serving their own interests. but they want to be politicians, they want to be elected as politicians, but the, it would appear can i suggest, respectfully, to every one who's a politician in lebanon. that may be the politicians who survived at the top of the political system for so long. now, i'm more interested in themselves than they are in fixing the economy, finding out who should be held accountable for this particular terrible event a year ago. let me tell you, i did not resigned from politics. i resigned from parliament. that is just the facade for all the corruption. they don't do anything in that parliament. staying within this institution is somehow a perjury. because all we do is see how we can keep this immunities for now, for instance. and in the same time, they have

a platform where and these go and just break their voices and, you know, give the, give a feel at this real democracy in this country. now be heard of this parliament and this is his own stronghold. and he does whatever he wants. we never thought and theory and a natural one. i can't recall ones where we really used the voting, electronic voting machines. we just raise our hand and it doesn't, doesn't look quite raising hand or is not. he decides to see what knows should be passed. they don't listen to even the m p 's, what they have to say. and it's just business as usual. and it's just a place to, to, you know, show that there is a democracy in this country. when it's not at all, i can tell you.