There have been countless nights in Beirut where Paul and Tracy Naggear lie awake, not in their beds as one might expect. Since August 4, 2020, their days have revolved around a life barely contained within their home. The Beirut port explosion that day stole a little girl’s life and added another sorrowful name to a list of over 200 victims. Now, on the fourth day of each month, the Naggears join several families at the crime scene’s edge, where the old house sits beside silos transformed into instruments of destruction. Although the windows facing the sea have been repaired, the ache remains stubbornly intact.
People tell stories about time healing wounds, but in their words time does not erase truth or justice. Paul Naggear speaks to El Periódico de Catalunya about this ongoing ache. Walking through Beirut keeps the absence alive: ruined buildings linger, some slowly giving way to rebirth, while new plumes of smoke from burning silos redraw the horizon. This week two silos collapsed again, and a dust cloud rolled over the city once more.
On these streets, amid terraces piled with rubble, the August disaster is still present in memory. It is a moment not spoken of in the language of a normal history, a silence that feels like rot around a wound that refuses to close. The city remembers even when people forget.
permanent scars
About 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate detonated in the port, coated by neglect and stored under perilous conditions. The blast struck the Lebanese capital on a hot afternoon, claiming more than 215 lives, wounding over 6,000, and rendering nearly 2,000 people permanently altered and some 300,000 homeless. In a devastated Beirut, numbers fail to convey the depth of the tragedy. Long after the disaster alarms sounded, the political leaders had been warned about the dangerous presence of this substance, but they chose to look away. Official promises of a swift investigation were made, promising results within five days.
Yet 725 days on, there are still no answers. Ongoing political barriers around the inquiry, alongside a deep economic collapse, have fostered a creeping amnesia among a traumatized population. Only the families of the deceased remain steadfast in their pursuit of accountability, facing a system said to resist scrutiny. The investigative bodies are seen by some as entangled with the very leaders who faced accusations, a web that delays justice. A veteran observer explains the frustration of those seeking accountability, noting that the delay is not caused by lack of evidence but by political will. This reality pushes the effort to pursue remedies beyond Lebanon, as described by Sarah Copland from Melbourne, Australia.
grieving parents
Fourteen thousand kilometers away, in a place distant from the life he shared with his son Isaac, the mother of Isaac recalls a different kind of loss. The explosion happened in a setting meant to be safe, in a home where a child should thrive. An international civil servant who lived and worked in Beirut at the time shares the sentiment that distance cannot erase the impact. August 4 marks two years since the tragedy, a milestone for a child who had just reached a moment of growth when he died in his highchair.
It feels shocking to many that such pain could be endured so deeply, yet the reality is that healing is not simply a matter of time. Copland observes a sense of loneliness amid a war of silence. The Naggears speak of a relentless determination to pursue justice through any means, insisting that accountability extend beyond a single moment to address a pattern of corruption that compromised public safety. Alexandra’s father asserts the necessity of continuing the effort regardless of the walls that must be faced.
investigation blocked
Lebanon’s formal investigation stalled last December, turning toward international avenues for answers. Human rights watchdogs and groups within the United Nations ecosystem are calling for a credible, international probe into the explosion. At the same time, legal actions have emerged in other jurisdictions, including the United States and the United Kingdom.
In Texas, a group of relatives of the victims filed a suit against the carrier responsible for the ship carrying the deadly ammonium nitrate. The plaintiffs emphasize the harmful chain of decisions that allowed a risky cargo to linger near the city and point to a broader culture of corruption that prioritized interests over people. The aim is to show the breadth of responsibility and to insist that all accountable parties face consequences.
A Swiss-Lebanese lawyer, involved in the Accountability Now initiative, notes that Lebanon’s judiciary has faced serious obstacles. Legal professionals in Switzerland have helped victims pursue avenues against the U.S. and Norwegian geophysical services groups that played a role in the crisis. The process on Lebanese soil remains suspended, prompting advocates to pursue strategic, cross-border legal avenues to prevent the case from fading away.
cases abroad
Beyond Lebanon, the pressure to hold those responsible grows stronger. Two years after Beirut’s explosion, formal charges have not materialized, and attempts to arrest ministers, lawmakers, and security chiefs have encountered resistance. The current pace of the inquiry is described by collaborators as a stark contrast to the urgency the tragedy deserves. A single judge has shouldered a heavy burden since early 2021, described by supporters as a solitary fight against a broader political structure. They argue that the delay stems from political will, not from a lack of evidence, and this shift has driven families to seek new legal paths abroad as part of the strategy to keep the pursuit alive.
Where formal routes stall, new judicial efforts abroad provide a glimmer of hope. The sense is that the fight cannot be abandoned; the aim is to ensure that those who enabled the tragedy are not forgotten. The persistent message from advocates is uncompromising: accountability, truth, and a path to healing that honors the memories of those lost.
catharsis for justice
Seeking justice is framed as a step toward healing, a way to acknowledge the hurt and begin to mend. Advocates stress that truth and accountability are essential, not just for the families but for a society trying to rebuild trust after a catastrophe driven by corruption. The families describe justice as a universal demand in any functioning state, with the broader political implications of a resolution having meaning for Lebanon’s future governance.
In the reflections of Isaac’s mother, a sense of ongoing love and resolve remains. Although the fear of time eroding memory persists, there is also a fierce resolve to ensure that Isaac and other victims are not forgotten. The desire to tell a child that every effort was made to secure justice becomes a guiding principle for those who continue the fight. The narrative holds a quiet, stubborn hope that perseverance and solidarity can counter a system that seems to work against accountability.
Support from others who share the same goal stands as a vital stimulus. A call to action insists that inaction is not a neutral choice, but a form of complicity. The path toward justice may be fraught with hurdles, yet the participants remain united in their determination to pursue the truth and demand accountability for those involved in the tragedy. This collective effort embodies a belief that justice, when pursued with unwavering resolve, can help redefine a society’s relationship with its past and its future.