TRIPOLI
\n The death toll in a building collapse in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli on Sunday climbed to nine, a civil defence official said \u2014 the second such incident in weeks. The state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported \u201cthe collapse of an old building\u201d in Tripoli\u2019s Bab al-Tabbaneh neighbourhood, the poorest in the impoverished city. Rescuers were still searching for survivors.
\nSecurity personnel evacuated adjacent buildings fearing further collapses, it added. An media correspondent saw teams of rescue workers toiling into the night on the rubble of the collapsed structure, as ambulances stood by. Civil defence director general Imad Khreish told local media that nine people had been killed but that six others who were rescued were taken to hospital.
\nThe building consisted of two blocks, each containing six apartments, he added. Residents estimated some 22 people were inside at the time of the collapse, he said. Local activist Jumana al-Shahal told media at the site that the incident was \u201ca testament to the accumulated neglect of this forgotten city\u201d. Mayor Abdel Hamid Karimeh told journalists \u201cwe declare Tripoli a disaster-stricken city\u201d due to unsafe buildings.
\n\u201cThousands of our people in Tripoli are threatened due to years of neglect,\u201d he said. \u201cThe situation is beyond the capabilities of the Tripoli municipality.\u201d This latest disaster came after another deadly building collapse in Tripoli late last month. After Sunday\u2019s incident, the NNA reported that angry young men took to the streets on motorbikes, some heading \u201cto the offices of some politicians\u201d and vandalising metal barriers there.
\nIn January, the head of the higher relief authority, Bassam Nablusi, citing Tripoli municipality statistics, said 105 buildings required \u201cimmediate warning notices to their residents to evacuate\u201d. Local media reported the structure that collapsed on Sunday was not included in a list of buildings at imminent risk. Lebanon is dotted with derelict buildings, and many inhabited structures are in an advanced state of disrepair.
\nMany buildings were built illegally, especially during the 1975-1990 civil war, while some owners have added new floors to existing apartment blocks without permits. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said the government was ready to provide housing allowances to residents of buildings requiring evacuation. In a statement, he decried a \u201chumanitarian catastrophe\u201d that he said was caused by \u201clong years of accumulated neglect\u201d.
\nHis office said he had summoned the justice and interior ministers for an emergency meeting. Justice Minister Adel Nassar asked the public prosecutor in the north to open an immediate investigation into the incident, the NNA said, reporting that procedures had begun. A recent report by research and design firm Public Works Studio said several buildings fully or partially collapsed in Tripoli in January.
\nIt cited causes including unplanned urban expansion and a lack of proper construction oversight. In 2024, rights group Amnesty International said \u201cthousands of people\u201d were still living in unsafe buildings in Tripoli more than a year after a major earthquake centred on Turkey and neighbouring Syria had had weakened the structures.
\nEven before the February 2023 quake, Tripoli residents \u201chad raised the alarm about their dire housing situation, caused by decades of neglect and contractors\u2019 lack of compliance with safety regulations\u201d, it said. The situation was compounded by Lebanon\u2019s years-long economic crisis meaning residents could not afford repairs or alternative housing, it added, urging authorities to \u201curgently… assess the safety of buildings across the country\u201d. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
TRIPOLI The death toll in a building collapse in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli on Sunday climbed to nine, a civil defence official said \u2014 the second such incident in weeks. The state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported \u201cthe collapse of an old building\u201d in Tripoli\u2019s Bab al-Tabbaneh neighbourhood, the poorest in the impoverished […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":530507,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-530479","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n