August 13, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 145 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session

[Page S5411]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   SENATE RESOLUTION 682--RECOGNIZING THE DEVASTATING EXPLOSION THAT 
ROCKED THE PORT OF BEIRUT ON AUGUST 4, 2020, AND EXPRESSING SOLIDARITY 
                        WITH THE LEBANESE PEOPLE

  Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. Risch, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Rubio, Mr. 
Warner, Mr. Romney, Mr. Murphy, and Mr. Portman) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
Relations:

                              S. Res. 682

       Whereas, on August 4, 2020, 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate 
     detonated at the Port of Beirut, killing more than 200 people 
     and injuring thousands more;
       Whereas the dangerous and highly explosive material was 
     unsafely stored at the Port of Beirut since 2014, despite 
     repeated warnings over the threat the stockpile posed to the 
     surrounding civilian population;
       Whereas the Secretary General of the Lebanese Red Cross was 
     quoted as saying, ``What we are witnessing is a huge 
     catastrophe.'';
       Whereas the blast destroyed vast swaths of infrastructure 
     across Beirut and displaced up to 300,000 people;
       Whereas the blast destroyed or damaged the entire port of 
     Beirut, through which Lebanon imports the bulk of its food, 
     including the destruction of approximately 120,000 metric 
     tons of desperately needed food stocks, according to the 
     United Nations;
       Whereas, prior to the blast, nearly 1,000,000 people in the 
     Beirut metropolitan area, including more than 500,000 
     children, did not have the means to buy basic essentials, 
     including food;
       Whereas Lebanon already struggles to support the largest 
     per-capita population of refugees in the world, including 
     nearly 1,000,000 Syrian refugees currently registered with 
     the United Nations;
       Whereas the governor of Beirut predicted that the full cost 
     of recovery and relief could be between $3,000,000,000 and 
     $5,000,000,000;
       Whereas several Beirut hospitals, already struggling to 
     procure medical equipment and pay medical staff amid the 
     spread of COVID-19, have sustained too much blast damage to 
     admit new patients;
       Whereas the blasts coincides with a period of protracted 
     political crisis in Lebanon;
       Whereas, after months of political deadlock, Lebanon formed 
     a government in January of this year with the backing of 
     Hezbollah, a United States-designated Foreign Terrorist 
     Organization (FTO), and its allies;
       Whereas endemic corruption and Hezbollah's mismanagement 
     has led Lebanon to the brink of economic collapse, including 
     an 80 percent currency devaluation since 2019, one of the 
     highest rates of public debt, food insecurity, and 
     hyperinflation;
       Whereas the United States Government has longstanding 
     concerns about Hezbollah's use of and influence over the 
     Beirut port as a transit and storage point for its terrorist 
     enterprise;
       Whereas the people of Lebanon across the political spectrum 
     have renewed demands for a meaningful change in Lebanon's 
     political leadership, government accountability, and 
     transparency;
       Whereas, following the explosion and public outcry from the 
     Lebanese people, Prime Minister Hassan Diab announced on 
     August 10, 2020, that he and his government would step down;
       Whereas international donors, including the United States, 
     have pledged $297,000,000 in aid to Lebanon at a virtual 
     summit hosted by French President Emanuel Macron;
       Whereas the United States, through the United States Agency 
     for International Development, announced on August 7, 2020, 
     that it would provide more than $15,000,000 in humanitarian 
     assistance to aid the people of Lebanon following the 
     explosions at the Port of Beirut, and that these funds would 
     support life-saving medical responses and relief for the 
     immediate needs of people facing this tragedy, including food 
     aid for 50,000 people for three months and medical and 
     pharmaceutical support for up to 60,000 people for three 
     months; and
       Whereas a stable Lebanon with a credible, transparent 
     government free from Iranian and Hezbollah interference is in 
     the broader national security interests of the United States 
     and United States partners and allies: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) extends its heartfelt condolences to, and stands with, 
     the people of Lebanon;
       (2) supports United States Government efforts to provide 
     emergency humanitarian relief in concert with other 
     governments and international partners;
       (3) affirms that United States assistance, led by the 
     United States Agency for International Development, should be 
     delivered directly to the Lebanese people through properly 
     vetted channels, organizations, and individuals;
       (4) calls on the Government of Lebanon to conduct a 
     credible, impartial, and transparent investigation into the 
     cause of, and responsibility for, the explosion, and include 
     impartial international experts as part of the investigation 
     team;
       (5) calls on the investigation team to evaluate and 
     determine the root causes of instability and economic 
     mismanagement that have impacted the people of Lebanon; and
       (6) further calls on the Government of Lebanon to restore 
     faith and confidence by prioritizing policies and programs 
     that advance the interests of the people of Lebanon.

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