(Washington) The chief of the Pentagon Mark Esper evoked Wednesday the thesis of an accident concerning the explosions which ravaged Beirut, contrary to what Donald Trump affirmed the day before by assuring that military experts had spoken to him about 'a bomb “.
Posted on August 5 2020 at 15 h 51
France Media Agency
“I'm inquiring about what happened,” the US defense minister said in an online forum. “Most people think it was an accident, as has been reported,” he added, when asked about the Beirut disaster at the Aspen SEecurity Forum.
Tuesday evening, during his daily press conference on the new coronavirus, Mr. Trump estimated that the deadly explosions in Beirut “looked like a terrible attack”.
“I met our generals and it looks like it wasn't an industrial accident. It seems, according to them, that it was an attack, it was a bomb, ”he added.
Questioned by the AFP, a Pentagon spokesman had however declared that he had “nothing” to add, advising to “contact the White House for clarifications”.
Mr. Esper said Washington is “positioning itself” to provide humanitarian aid to Lebanon.
Foreign Minister Mike Pompeo also said he offered US aid in a telephone interview Wednesday with Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab.
Mr. Pompeo expressed Washington's “steadfast commitment” to “assist the Lebanese people who are facing the aftermath of this terrifying event,” the state department said in a statement.
The US diplomacy press release does not mention the causes of the disaster, only mentioning a “terrible explosion”.
The Lebanese authorities declared that the blasts, which left more than 100 dead and 4000 injured, were due to the explosion of 2750 tons of ammonium nitrate in the port. Ammonium is used in some fertilizers but also in explosives.
