Lebanese Gov’t Dissolved Amid Explosion Chaos

Lebanon Prime Minister Hassan Diab resigned on Monday evening in the wake of last week’s deadly Beirut blast, plunging the battered country into deeper political turmoil. Diab explained he was acquiescing to “the will of the people in their demand to hold accountable those responsible” for the horrific explosion that claimed the lives of at least 163 people and injured over 6,000. Following the embattled prime minister’s resignation, President Michel Aoun will now look to appoint a new candidate who will be tasked with forming a functioning government. Also on Monday, Reuters revealed that only two weeks prior to the explosion, Lebanese officials, including the prime minister and president, were alerted by a special team of experts to the risks of holding thousands of tons of ammonium nitrate in Beirut Port and the potential of an event eerily similar to the one that transpired last week. The findings are sure to further enrage the protesters who have gathered by the thousands in recent days to storm government buildings and confront police in a demand for justice and change.