Middle East & North Africa

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon’s leading Druze politician Walid Jumblatt called on Thursday for an international investigation into the Beirut port explosion and said he had “no trust” in the government to find out the truth about it.

“We have no trust at all in this ruling gang,” said Jumblatt, whose party has lawmakers in parliament but is not in the cabinet, which took office in January with backing from the Hezbollah movement and its allies.

06 Aug 2020; MEMO: Qatar has announced the establishment of an air bridge to get aid to the people of Lebanon following the explosion in the capital Beirut on Tuesday.

According to the Qatar News Agency, Emir Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani has ordered an airlift of emergency medical aid to Lebanon, and the first aircraft of the Qatar Air Force has already left for Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport.

06 Aug 2020; MEMO: Iranian President, Hassan Rouhani, has called for the repercussions of the explosion that devastated the port of the Lebanese capital Beirut on Tuesday.

Rouhani described the explosion as a “tragic accident that caused deep sadness in Iran”.

In a message sent to his Lebanese counterpart, Michel Aoun, yesterday, the Iranian president expressed his country’s readiness to send medical aid to Lebanon, treat the wounded and provide any other necessary help.

06 Aug 2020; MEMO: Thousands of Egyptians working in Kuwait lost their jobs after the Kuwaiti Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) suspended flights from 31 high-risk countries, including Egypt, as part of efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19.

06 Aug 2020; MEMO: The international community has rushed to deliver aid to Lebanon in the wake of the explosions which rocked the capital Beirut on Tuesday, killing at least 137 and injuring thousands more.

06 Aug 2020; MEMO: Former Spanish King, Juan Carlos, refused a Saudi offer to move to a palace in the kingdom after abdicating the throne and going into exile after facing allegations of corruption.

RAMALLAH, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- A senior Palestinian official said on Thursday that Palestine will address official letters to the United Nations over the Israeli violations against the Palestinian people in their territories.

Omar Awadallah, head of public administration for UN human rights organizations with the Palestinian Foreign Ministry, accused Israel of expanding the cycle of its violations against the Palestinian people.

TEHRAN, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Iran has started sending food, medicine and medical equipment to Lebanon, after the huge explosions at Beirut's port, Press TV reported on Wednesday.

Iran's Red Crescent Society (IRCS) spokesman Mohammad Nasiri announced the shipment of 2,000 packages of food, weighing 9 tonnes, to Lebanon, together with medicines, medical equipment and professionals.

Two cargoes are expected to arrive in Beirut on Wednesday, after a first load of Iranian aid was delivered the day before, shortly after the blast.

06 Aug 2020; MEMO: Former Israeli Member of the Knesset Moshe Feiglin gleefully hailed yesterday’s devastating explosion in Beirut as a “gift” from God in time for the Jewish festival Tu B’Av.

06 Aug 2020; MEMO: The Governor of Beirut Marwan Abboud announced on Wednesday that 300,000 Lebanese citizens have become homeless in the wake of the massive explosion that occurred in Beirut port, Al Watan Voice reported.