Tripoli filling in for Beirut

Lebanon’s northern city of Tripoli is readying its port to temporarily replace that of Beirut and ensure urgently needed food deliveries, officials said on Thursday, after the capital’s harbour was levelled in last week’s massive explosion.

Tripoli port’s capacity is smaller than the capital’s, through which the vast majority of Lebanon’s food and other imports used to transit.

A fire at Beirut port on August 4 spread to a huge stockpile of ammonium nitrate, causing an explosion that devastated swathes of the city and killed at least 171 people.

Immediately after the disaster, Lebanon’s Supreme Defence Council ordered that the Port of Tripoli be set up for “import and export operations”.

The smaller ports of Saida and Tyre can also contribute to the effort but their capacity is limited and does not allow for bigger vessels to dock.

Lebanon relies on imports for 85 per cent of its food needs and the UN’S World Food Programme has warned that the destruction of the main port could worsen an already alarming situation.

Lebanon’s economic collapse in recent months has seen it default on its debt, plunged the local currency into freefall and sent poverty rates soaring, on top of the country’s COVID-19 outbreak.

Tripoli had already undergone major upgrade works in order to accommodate increased traffic expected in connection with the reconstruction effort needed in neighbouring, warravaged Syria.

The huge silos at Beirut port are still standing but unusable, with one side of the towering structure completely gutted by the explosion, whose epicentre was nearby.

The United Nations and several countries have sent thousands of tonnes of wheat and other commodities since the disaster to prevent a shortage of bread in Lebanon, where public anger against the government has boiled over into street protests.

Ships carrying emergency aid are still able to sail to Beirut and unload aid, usually with the help of the military.

Media reports suggest that several countries have already expressed interest in rebuilding Beirut port, including China, France and Turkey. — AFP