A large blast in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, has killed at least 50 people and injured more than 2,700 others, the health minister says. It is not yet clear what caused the explosion.
Videos show smoke billowing from a fire before the blast, which is followed by a mushroom cloud. Hospitals are said to be overwhelmed and many buildings have been destroyed.
Lebanon’s internal security chief said the blast happened in an area housing highly explosive materials.
A BBC journalist at the scene reported dead bodies and severe damage, enough to put the port of Beirut out of action.
Local media showed people trapped beneath rubble. A witness described the first explosion as deafening, and video footage showed wrecked cars and blast-damaged buildings.
The explosion comes at a sensitive time for Lebanon, with an economic crisis reigniting old divisions. Tensions are also high ahead of Friday’s verdict in a trial over the killing of ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005.
Officials are pointing to an accident rather than a deliberate act as a possible cause. The interior minister said first reports suggested what he called explosive material stored at the port had blown up.
Prime Minister Hassan Diab called it a catastrophe and said those responsible must be held to account. He spoke of a “dangerous warehouse” which had been there since 2014, but said he would not pre- empt the investigation.