When I sat down last December to start writing my new political thriller, The Beirut Protocol, I did so in part because I wanted to draw my readers’ attention to Lebanon, a country that I’ve never been to but where I have many dear friends. I also wanted to highlight the threat that the Iranian regime and the Hezbollah terrorist organization pose not only to the national security of the United States and Israel, but also to the people of Lebanon. I did not imagine, however, that Beirut would literally explode onto the front pages of every newspaper in the world quite so quickly.

A few thoughts.

There are at least three types of automobile crashes. The first is a random occurrence—a fluke. A deer runs full speed into the front fender of a car, causing the driver to lose control, cross the center line, and plow into oncoming traffic. No one is punished because no one is to blame. The second type of crash results from a momentary loss of concentration or a lack of judgment. A driver’s eyes are drawn to the message on a road sign just long enough for him to not notice the brake lights of the car in front. Blame is assigned to the distracted driver, but the punishment is minimal—traffic fines, insurance deductibles. There is no jail time considered because there was no intention involved. It was simply a dumb accident.

The third collision is very different. This crash is directly connected to negligence or criminal activity. This driver may be operating an unsafe vehicle or racing to escape the police. This type of crash sees the contemptible driver who has too much to drink at the bar, gets behind the wheel, and rams into the side of a family’s minivan. There is severe punishment for this person. Even though they never intended to hit the other vehicle—it was technically an accident—their terrible choices and negligent acts were what created the scenario for the tragedy to take place.

On August 4, 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate exploded at the port of Beirut, killing at least 172 people, wounding over 6,000 more, and causing damages that could total as much as $15 billion.[1] As of now, it appears to have been a tragic accident. However, it is an accident that took place because the Lebanese government has been driving impaired for years.

Having alcohol in one’s system affects the ability to think clearly, to process circumstances wisely, and to react in a timely manner. The impairment of Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun and his leadership team is caused not by alcohol, but by Hezbollah—yet its effects are essentially the same. While the arrival of the ammonium nitrate to Beirut might possibly have been accidental—allegedly due to a Moldovan-flagged ship that was carrying the material having technical problems and making an unscheduled stop there[2]—it’s hard to believe that the retention of the chemical compound was simply accidental or an oversight. Hezbollah has long used the port of Beirut for its smuggling activities[3] and has for years held a strong interest in accumulating ammonium nitrate for bomb making.[4] It strains credulity to believe that the terrorist group and its primary funder, Iran, didn’t both know about the stockpile and have plans for its eventual use.

Not surprisingly, when international offers were made to help get to the bottom of what caused the blast, President Aoun flatly rejected them. Joyce Karam, Washington correspondent of the UAE news site The National, speculates several reasons for this. Lebanese leadership may want to deny forensic access to the port, thereby hiding their own negligence in caring for the compound; to block intelligence access as to what may be happening at the port with regards to smuggling, illicit activity, Hezbollah, and a route into Syria; and to prevent staff access to those who know the full story of the origins of the ammonium nitrate and why it was still there.[5] In other words, they want to cover it up. But this is far too big for that.

Two days after the explosion took so many lives and destroyed countless others, the president of France, Emmanuel Macron, visited Beirut. He voiced his sadness and frustration at seeing the widespread devastation brought about by Lebanon’s corrupt leadership, when he said, “I see the emotion on your face, the sadness, the pain. This is why I’m here.” He continued, saying that “what is also needed here is political change. This explosion should be the start of a new era.”[6] The Lebanese people agree. Widespread protests immediately broke out against President Aoun and the government of Prime Minister Hassan Diab. People are angry and are demanding justice—and they’re right.

On Monday, August 10, Prime Minister Diab and his entire government resigned in shame. As of this writing, however, President Aoun remains in power.[7] It was a dramatic development, but the big question is this: Now what?

The only hope for true, serious, sweeping reform of the Lebanese government would be to drive Iran and its terrorist proxy group, Hezbollah, out of the country for good. At the moment, this does not seem likely, but let’s pray for a miracle. The people of Lebanon are suffering terribly and have been for years. Their economy is a wreck. The value of their currency has dropped more than 80 percent since last year.[8] Now some 300,000 Lebanese are homeless due to this horrific explosion that is a direct consequence of the government’s negligence.[9]

It doesn’t have to be this way. This beleaguered nation was once known as the Switzerland of the Middle East. Its capital, Beirut, was once known as the Paris of the Middle East. Not only was it quiet and peaceful and prosperous and gorgeous, but it was a place where Muslims and Christians lived side by side in mutual respect and cooperation.

Now Lebanon has effectively become a province of the Islamic Republic of Iran, whose regime cares nothing for the people but only about building a massive army and arsenal and preparing for an apocalyptic, end-times war with Israel.

Please pray for the liberation of the Lebanese people. They have been through so much, and they need so much better. I, for one, plan to continue writing and speaking about their plight as we approach the launch of The Beirut Protocol and beyond.

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[1] Andreas Rinke and Michael Georgy, “Lebanon Must Fight Corruption after Beirut Blast, Says German Foreign Minister,” Thomson Reuters, August 12, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-lebanon-security-blast/change-needed-in-lebanon-after-beirut-blast-says-german-foreign-minister-idUSKCN258189

[2] Sarah Dadouch, Loveday Morris, Suzan Haidamous, and Joby Warrick, “A Vast Store of Explosive Material Sat in Beirut for Years despite Repeated Warnings,” Washington Post, August 5, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/a-vast-store-of-explosive-material-sat-in-beirut-for-years-despite-repeated-warnings/2020/08/05/c3ed5ce2-d714-11ea-a788-2ce86ce81129_story.html

[3] Liz Sly, Sarah Dadouch, Erin Cunningham, and Louisa Loveluck, “As Beirut’s Fury Grows, Hezbollah Leader Warns against Blaming Shiite Militia for Devastation,” Washington Post, August 7, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/beirut-explosions-rescue-victims/2020/08/07/5c78297e-d819-11ea-a788-2ce86ce81129_story.html

[4] Dadouch et al, “A Vast Store of Explosive Material Sat in Beirut for Years”

[5] Joyce Karam (@Joyce_Karam), “Why would Lebanon reject an international probe · Access to Port · Access to what may be happening at Port: Smuggling, illicit activity, Hezbollah, route to Syria · Access to staff that know origin of ammonium nitrate, why it was there,” Twitter, August 7, 2020, 9:12 a.m., https://twitter.com/Joyce_Karam/status/1291739077348294656

[6] Ellen Francis and Michel Rose, “‘Revolution’: Angry Crowds in Beirut Urge Macron to Help Bring Change,” Thomson Reuters, August 6, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-lebanon-security-blast-macron-tour/revolution-angry-crowds-in-beirut-urge-macron-to-help-bring-change-idUSKCN2521QJ

[7] Louisa Loveluck, Loveday Morris, and Liz Sly, “Lebanon’s Prime Minister to Step Down amid Large Protests Following Last Week’s Blast,” Washington Post, August 10, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/lebanons-prime-minister-steps-down-amid-large-protests-following-last-weeks-blast/2020/08/10/423c4928-da9e-11ea-b4f1-25b762cdbbf4_story.html

[8] Liz Sly, “Lebanon’s Currency Takes a New Dive, and There Is No End in Sight,” Washington Post, June 26, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/lebanon-currency-economy-crisis/2020/06/26/9e2c62ea-b712-11ea-9a1d-d3db1cbe07ce_story.html

[9] Rinke and Georgy