- England beat Finland to get back on track
- King and Lewis propel West Indies to T20 triumph over Sri Lanka
- Pre-Halloween 'Terrifier' lands atop North America box office
- 'I still plan to compete and play next season,' says Djokovic
- Harris, Trump seek advantage in knife-edge election battle
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record in Chicago
- Kamindu and Asalanka power Sri Lanka to 179 against West Indies
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record as Korir wins in Chicago
- Spain send injured Yamal home 'to prioritise player's health'
- In milestone, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Iraq walks fine line with pro-Iran factions to avoid war
- Race four abandoned after New Zealand breeze into 3-0 lead in America's Cup
- West Indies win toss, put Sri Lanka in to bat in first T20
- Sudan rescuers say air strike killed 23 in Khartoum market
- Netanyahu tells UN to move Lebanon peacekeepers out of 'harm's way'
- Bangladeshi Hindus defy attack worries to celebrate festival
- Kiwis three up in America's Cup as Ineos pay for time penalty
- In a first, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Dominant England crush Scotland at Women's T20 World Cup
- Dropped: The rise and fall of Pakistan batting maestro Babar Azam
- Israel fights Hezbollah on the ground, pounds Lebanon from the air
- Sabalenka outlasts local hero Zheng to win third Wuhan Open title
- Bangladeshi Hindus shrug off attack worries to celebrate festival
- Former Pakistan captain Azam dropped for second England Test
- 'Opportunist' Dupont dazzles on Toulouse return
- Australia replace injured Vlaeminck with Graham at Women's T20 World Cup
- Sinner wins Shanghai Masters to deny Djokovic 100th career title
- Ubisoft fears assassin's hit over falling sales
- Israel hits Lebanon from the air and fights Hezbollah on the ground
- China's Yin has 'goosebumps' as she romps to LPGA win in Shanghai
- Pakistan to re-use Multan pitch for second England Test
- Blair and King Charles hail Salmond's 'devotion' to Scotland
- Vietnam, China hold talks on calming South China Sea tensions
- SpaceX will try to 'catch' giant Starship rocket shortly before landing
- England captain Stokes in line for second Pakistan Test return
- Japan's former empress Michiko discharged after surgery: reports
- Japan's former empress Michiko discharged after surgey: reports
- Israel widens Lebanon strikes as troops fight Hezbollah along border
- Bowlers' graveyards: Pakistan's placid pitches under fresh fire
- 'Little Gregory' murder haunts France 40 years on
- Vietnam, China to expand rail links, cross-border payments
- Americans get their belief back as Pochettino makes his mark
- Vietnam, China to boost economic, defence cooperation
- Winning start for Pochettino's American adventure
- Tariffs, tax cuts, energy: What is in Trump's economic plan?
- Amazon wants to be everything to everyone
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- Winning start for Poch's American adventure
- Morocco's tribeswomen see facial tattoo tradition fade
- Centre-left set to win as pro-Ukraine Lithuania votes
Still no answers three years after Beirut mega-explosion
One of history's biggest non-nuclear explosions rocked Beirut on August 4, 2020, destroying swathes of the Lebanese capital, killing more than 220 people and injuring at least 6,500.
Three years on, the probe into the traumatic disaster caused by a huge pile of poorly-stored fertiliser remains bogged down in legal and political wrangling, to the dismay of victims' families.
- The mega-blast -
The massive explosion, heard as far away as Cyprus, destroys much of Beirut port and entire districts of the city in scenes that shock the country and the world.
The blast leaves a 43-metre (141 foot) deep crater and registers as the equivalent of a magnitude 3.3 earthquake.
The disaster spreads fear and chaos, with mountains of broken glass littering roads and bloodied survivors flooding overwhelmed hospitals.
The blast was caused by a fire in a warehouse where a vast stockpile of the industrial chemical ammonium nitrate had been haphazardly stored for years.
The tragedy strikes amid a deep economic crisis, almost a year after mass demonstrations erupted against a ruling class deemed inept and corrupt as living conditions worsen.
On August 10, Prime Minister Hassan Diab resigns under a barrage of pressure over the explosion.
- Probe thwarted -
In December 2020, the lead investigator examining the blast, Fadi Sawan, charges Diab and three ex-ministers with negligence.
Two of them file a complaint, the probe is suspended, and Sawan is removed from his post by court order.
In July 2021, the new investigating magistrate, Tarek Bitar, moves to interrogate four former ministers but parliament stalls on lifting their immunity.
He is forced to suspend the probe following a series of court challenges.
- Gun battle -
In October 2021, the powerful Shiite movement Hezbollah and its ally Amal call for demonstrations to demand Bitar's dismissal.
Seven people are killed in gun battles during the rally.
At the end of 2021, Bitar resumes his investigation but less than two weeks later is forced to suspend work for a fourth time following more legal challenges.
- Silos collapse -
On August 4, 2022, several grain silos damaged in the explosion collapse in a cloud of dust, a traumatic reminder of the disaster that struck exactly two years before.
Days earlier, other parts of the silos crumbled after a fire broke out when remaining grain stocks fermented and ignited in the summer heat.
- Judicial showdown -
In January 2023, 13 months after his probe is suspended, Bitar resumes work and charges Prosecutor General Ghassan Oueidat and seven others with probable intent to murder, arson and other crimes.
Oueidat in turn charges Bitar with insubordination and "usurping power" but the investigator refuses to step down.
Oueidat also orders the release "of all those detained" over the port blast, leaving the investigation stalled and nobody yet held to account.
Victims' families and rights groups urge the United Nations to create an independent fact-finding mission.
L.Harper--AMWN