MP George Okais warned against the possibility of repeating the Beirut port explosion scenario, following his announcement about a ship carrying sodium sulfide preparing to dock at one of the Lebanese ports.
The National News Agency reported that MP Okais, from the "Strong Lebanon" bloc, expressed his concerns that the port explosion scenario could occur again, describing the authorities as unwilling to learn from the tragedy of August 4. Okais explained that the ship MSC MASHA 3, arriving from China, is preparing to dock at one of the Lebanese ports (Beirut or Tripoli) to unload chemical materials made of sodium sulfide for transit through Lebanese territory to Syria.
Okais added that ten containers of sodium sulfide would be positioned off one of the Lebanese ports in the coming hours, noting that the Defense Minister approved the ship's unloading on January 19, 2021, and requested the Ministry of Public Works and Transport to prevent the unloading of the chemical containers.
He questioned who guarantees that the chemical materials will not be unloaded and stored inside Lebanese territory, raising concerns of a terrifying repetition of the ammonium nitrate tragedy. He also asked why the cargo is not being unloaded directly in Syria since it was Syria that requested these materials.
The MP from the Strong Lebanon bloc questioned whether the transit of these materials through Lebanese territory to Syria constitutes a violation of applicable international laws that could expose Lebanon to additional sanctions. Additionally, he inquired about how the containers would be inspected and whether it would be under the supervision of the Lebanese army, which he believes is the only entity trustworthy for this matter.
MP Okais demanded clarification on this issue, asserting that he would elevate the matter both publicly and institutionally, as Lebanese people are exhausted from the crimes of this ruling class and its lack of responsibility towards its citizens, as he described. He concluded his statement by explaining that sodium sulfide is classified as an explosive material according to publicly available studies on search engines.
