UN chief lays wreath at Beirut port, urges accountability for blast

US Secretary-General Antonio Guterres received 'assurances' that elections will be held on time

Ibrahim Hoteit, surrounded by the families of the victims of the Beirut blast, addresses the media outside the port of Beirut on the sixth-month anniversary of the explosion in February 2021.

Kayan Tleiss sits in front of the shrine dedicated to his brother in his living room in Khalde, in the southern suburbs of Beirut.

A photograph of Mohammad Tleiss is flanked by an image of the Virgin Mary and a copy of the Quran in Kayan Tleiss’s living room in Khalde in Beirut.

Kayan’s mother, holding a photograph of her son, Mohammed, sits outside the port of Beirut on the sixth-month anniversary of the explosion.

Tharwat and Nada Noureddine sit in their living groom in Mar Elias in Beirut surrounded by photographs of Tharwat’s brother and Nada’s son, Ayman.

Tharwat Noureddine holds a photograph that Ayman kept on his desk in Beirut. The frame was damaged during the explosion.

Photographs of Tharwat’s brother and Nada’s son, Ayman, adorn the family's living room in Mar Elias in Beirut. Ayman had returned from five months of training in the US right before the explosion.

Salam Iskandar, her husband, Jaber, and their son, Ali, sit in their living room in Borj El Brajneh in the southern suburbs of Beirut, surrounded by photographs of Salam's brother, Hamza, who died in the Beirut port blast. All photos: Oliver Marsden / The National

Salam Iskandar holds a photograph of her brother, Hamza, on her lap.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has said Lebanon needs proper accountability for the August 2020 Beirut port explosion.

Mr Guterres was speaking on Monday, the second day of a visit aimed at rallying international support for the crisis-hit country.

His comments followed a meeting with Lebanese House Speaker Nabih Berri and a visit to the port, where he laid a wreath at a memorial for the more than 215 people killed when chemicals stored at the port for nearly years exploded.

"I know the suffering ... and the will of the people to have proper accountability and I want to express my solidarity to all the victims of that tragedy," he said.

The UN chief, who arrived on Sunday, also said that he has received assurances from Lebanese leaders that next year's elections would be held on time. He also called on Lebanese leaders to work to address an economic crisis that has left four in five Lebanese people poor.

"Seeing the suffering of the people of Lebanon, Lebanese political leaders do not have the right to be divided and to paralyse the country," he said after meeting President Michel Aoun.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres lays a wreath in tribute to the victims of last year's Beirut port explosion. Reuters

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati's government has not met for more than two months amid a push by parties close to powerful politicians charged in connection with the blast to remove the judge leading an investigation.

In a video message before his visit, Mr Guterres said that he supported the Lebanese people's demands for "truth and justice" over the blast which many blame on corruption and dysfunction by a political elite that has been in power since the end of the 1975-90 civil war.

Mr Berri also called on Mr Guterres to help expedite indirect negotiations with Israel to resolve a dispute over Lebanon's southern maritime border.

The dispute centres on an area seen as a promising for oil and gas exploration but several rounds of talks have made little progress.