Eiffel Tower of Debris Cleared from Beirut Port

French and Lebanese soldiers have cleared 8,000 tons of steel and concrete equivalent to the weight of the Eiffel Tower from the Beirut port after it was devastated by a monster explosion. (AFP)
French and Lebanese soldiers have cleared 8,000 tons of steel and concrete equivalent to the weight of the Eiffel Tower from the Beirut port after it was devastated by a monster explosion. (AFP)
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Eiffel Tower of Debris Cleared from Beirut Port

French and Lebanese soldiers have cleared 8,000 tons of steel and concrete equivalent to the weight of the Eiffel Tower from the Beirut port after it was devastated by a monster explosion. (AFP)
French and Lebanese soldiers have cleared 8,000 tons of steel and concrete equivalent to the weight of the Eiffel Tower from the Beirut port after it was devastated by a monster explosion. (AFP)

French and Lebanese soldiers cleared 8,000 tons of steel and concrete equivalent to the weight of the Eiffel Tower from Beirut port which was devastated by a monster blast, an officer said Wednesday.

Efforts have focused recently on clearing the parts of the port worst affected by the massive August 4 explosion that ripped across swathes of Beirut and killed more than 180 people.

"It took me four days to clear 8,000 tons of concrete and steel," said Lieutenant Paulin, a French officer coordinating clearing operations at the port.

"8,000 tons since we got here five days ago, that's the equivalent of the weight of the Eiffel Tower," said Paulin, who belongs to a French civil engineering regiment.

The Tonnerre, a huge French amphibious helicopter carrier, arrived in Beirut earlier in August with dozens of trucks and heavy machinery to clear the debris.

The blast, one of the largest in recent history, levelled entire sectors of the port, created a 43-meter-deep crater that was covered by the sea, and sent a shockwave that damaged property and wounded people several miles away.

Colonel Yusef Haidar of the Lebanese army said the port, on which the country usually relies for around 90 percent of its imports, was currently operating at almost half of its capacity.

"Last week, it was 30 percent, today we're talking around 45 percent," he said during a news conference inside the port.

Three weeks after the blast, which was widely blamed on negligence by the Lebanese state, the port was still a sea of wrecked cars, mangled containers and collapsed warehouses.

French and Lebanese soldiers could be seen salvaging goods and sorting them in such a way that traders and insurance experts can visit and make loss assessments in the coming days.



Starmer Says Recognizing Palestinian State Must Be Part of Wider Peace Plan, E3 Urges End to Gaza War

People wave a giant Palestinian flag during a demonstration to support the population of Gaza called by various Albanian social organizations at Skanderbeg square in Tirana, on July 23, 2025. (AFP)
People wave a giant Palestinian flag during a demonstration to support the population of Gaza called by various Albanian social organizations at Skanderbeg square in Tirana, on July 23, 2025. (AFP)
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Starmer Says Recognizing Palestinian State Must Be Part of Wider Peace Plan, E3 Urges End to Gaza War

People wave a giant Palestinian flag during a demonstration to support the population of Gaza called by various Albanian social organizations at Skanderbeg square in Tirana, on July 23, 2025. (AFP)
People wave a giant Palestinian flag during a demonstration to support the population of Gaza called by various Albanian social organizations at Skanderbeg square in Tirana, on July 23, 2025. (AFP)

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that recognizing Palestinian statehood should be part of a wider plan for lasting security for Palestinians and Israelis,

After France said on Thursday it would recognize Palestine, Starmer said he was working with allies on the steps that were needed for peace in the conflict in Gaza.

"Recognition of a Palestinian state has to be one of those steps. I am unequivocal about that. But it must be part of a wider plan which ultimately results in a two-state solution and lasting security for Palestinians and Israelis," he said in a statement after speaking with the leaders of France and Germany.

The leaders of the so-called E3 group of France, Britain and Germany called on Friday for an end to the war in Gaza through an immediate ceasefire and said they were committed to supporting diplomatic efforts by the United States, Qatar and Egypt.

"The humanitarian catastrophe that we are witnessing in Gaza must end now...We firmly oppose all efforts to impose Israeli sovereignty over the Occupied Palestinian Territories," the leaders of the three European countries said in a joint statement.