Lebanon’s government asked the military on Tuesday to investigate the deadly sinking of a migrant boat, following allegations by survivors that the navy was responsible for the accident.
It was still unclear what led the small, overloaded boat to sink off the coast of Tripoli on Saturday.
Seven people, including a child, were killed and more are missing.
The boat carried at least 60 passengers, many times over its capacity. Authorities said 47 were rescued.
The military was given the task of conducting “transparent investigations into the circumstances behind the incident” under the supervision of the judiciary, AP cited Information Minister Ziad Makari as saying following an emergency Cabinet session.
Survivors accused the Lebanese Navy of ramming the vessel while trying to force it back to shore.
Lebanese officials have blamed smugglers for overloading the boat and ignoring safety precautions.
President Michel Aoun said the incident must be investigated because of “conflicting accounts of events”.
Senior military officials, including army chief Joseph Aoun, navy commander Col Haitham Dnaoui, and head of military intelligence Brig Gen Tony Kahwaji were summoned to present the findings of their preliminary investigation.
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The funeral procession after seven people were killed when a boat packed with migrants sank at the weekend as the Lebanese navy tried to force it back to shore, in Tripoli, north Lebanon. AP -
Mourners fire in the air during a funeral in Tripoli of a victim killed in last weekend's migrant boat sinking. AFP -
Mourners fire in the air during a funeral in Tripoli of a child killed in last weekend's migrant boat sinking. AFP -
Col Haitham Dinnawi, commander of the Lebanese navy, shows the Lebanese navy boat which was attempting to force a small vessel with migrants to turn back to the shore before it sank, during a press conference in Beirut. AP -
A handout photo allegedly shows survivors of a capsized boat on board a Lebanese army vessel after they were rescued off the coast of the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli. AFP -
A handout photo provided by the Lebanese Army website reportedly shows survivors of a capsized boat on board an army boat after they were rescued off the coast of the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli. AFP -
Medics wait on the pier as soldiers search for survivors off the coast of Tripoli, after an overloaded migrant boat capsized off north Lebanon during a chase by naval forces. AFP -
Lebanese army soldiers try to calm an angry relative of a man who is one of the missing migrants from an overnight sinking of a migrant boat, outside the seaport, in Tripoli, north Lebanon. AP -
Lebanese army soldiers search for survivors after a boat capsized off the coast of Tripoli overnight. Reuters -
People gather at the morgue entrance of a hospital in Tripoli as others carry the corpse of one of the people who died when their boat capsized a day earlier off the coast of Libya. AFP -
A man gives a drink of water to a woman grieving at the entrance of the morgue. AFP -
A grieving man is helped away at the entrance of the morgue of a hospital in Tripoli. AFP -
A man cries at the entrance of the morgue. AFP -
Lebanon was once a country that took in refugees but since a financial meltdown that began in late 2019 people have been leaving on boats in an attempt to get to Europe. AFP -
Children crying at the morgue entrance in Tripoli. AFP -
A Lebanese Army photo shows a boat with people rescued from distress off the Lebanese coast. EPA -
Red Cross forces giving first aid to people rescued off the Lebanese coast. EPA -
Lebanese soldiers stand guard at the entrance of the port of Tripoli, as an ambulance carries survivors from the boat. AFP -
The Army said high waves submerged the overloaded boat, which was believed to have been carrying at least 56 migrants. AFP -
Lebanese soldiers stand guard at the port. AFP
The report has not been made public.
The Cabinet ordered the government’s Higher Relief Commission with providing assistance to the families of victims and survivors and appealed to the Social Affairs Ministry to communicate with international organisations to provide health and psychological help.
