Jokowi Expresses Condolences For The Explosion In Lebanon

President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo (Photo: Setkab)

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo also expressed his condolences for the explosion that occurred in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, August 4 local time. The explosion resulted in hundreds of casualties and homelessness.

"My condolences to my brothers and sisters in Lebanon. In this tragic and painful incident, Indonesia stood with Lebanon," Jokowi said via his Twitter account @Jokowi, Thursday, August 6.

According to Jokowi, the incident was very tragic and painful. As the Head of Nagara, he said, all Indonesian people pray for the victims and their families.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and victims of the great explosion in Beirut," said Jokowi.

My deepest condolences to my brothers and sisters in Lebanon. In this tragic and painful incident, Indonesia stands with Lebanon. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and victims of the devastating explosion in Beirut.

- Joko Widodo (@jokowi) August 6, 2020

The explosion is known to have come from a warehouse of 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate. Lebanese media previously informed that the warehouse was a warehouse for fireworks storage.

Ammonium nitrate is a common industrial chemical used primarily for fertilizers as it is a good source of nitrogen for plants.

Launching The New York Times, Wednesday, August 5, some of the victims of the explosion were Lebanese public figures. The secretary general of the Kataeb political party, Nizar Najarian, was killed in the explosion. Meanwhile Kamal Hayek, chairman of the state-owned electricity company, is in critical condition.

Lebanese President Michel Aoun has instructed the military to help deal with this incident. President Aoun also called for an emergency meeting of the Supreme Defense Council, which declared Beirut a disaster area.

Coincidentally, on August 6, Japan will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. As a result of the bomb, it is estimated that about 140,000 of Hiroshima's 350,000 residents were killed and at least 74,000 were killed in Nagasaki. The bombings brought an abrupt end to war in Asia, with Japan surrendering to the Allies on August 14, 1945.

However, the blast in Beirut was "relatively small" compared to the Hiroshima-Nagasaki explosion. Vipin Narang, who studies nuclear proliferation and strategy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said the blast in Beirut was estimated to be equivalent to 240 tonnes of TNT. The Hiroshima bomb, on the other hand, had the equivalent of about 16,000 tonnes of TNT. In addition, the Beirut explosion also did not come from nuclear material.

The 75th anniversary of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings will be held on August 6 and August 9. In previous years, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the mayor attended the annual commemoration ceremony and new pledges for a nuclear-free world. Bells chimed and a minute's silence was observed at the exact moment bombs exploded in both cities. However for this year's anniversary events will be shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with fewer seats and messages conveyed by top officials via video.