London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Oct 28, 2025

Beirut explosion: UK government 'ready to go' with £5m aid to Lebanon - Raab

Beirut explosion: UK government 'ready to go' with £5m aid to Lebanon - Raab

The UK is ready to send medical experts and humanitarian aid to Lebanon following the deadly explosion in Beirut, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has said.

Mr Raab said the UK would "stand by the Lebanese people in their time of need" and promised a £5m aid package.

The UK will also send rescue workers with specially trained dogs, as well as a Royal Navy ship.

The blast on Tuesday killed at least 135 people and injured more than 4,000.

Search and rescue workers are continuing to try and find survivors from the explosion, which the UK government said measured 4.5 on the Richter scale.

Lebanon's president has said it was caused by ammonium nitrate stored unsafely in a warehouse, and a number of port officials have been placed under house arrest pending an investigation.

Health authorities and the Red Cross are struggling to deal with the aftermath, and the Lebanese government has announced a two-week state of emergency in Beirut.

Mr Raab said he was not sure on the precise number of UK nationals who may have been hurt, but the embassy was "monitoring that very carefully".

"I've just spoken to the Lebanese prime minister Hassan Diab," Mr Raab told reporters on Tuesday afternoon. "We are going to stand by the Lebanese people in their time of need.

He said measures that were "ready to go" included £5m humanitarian aid, for people made homeless by the disaster, as well as medical experts, search and rescue teams, and a nearby Royal Navy survey ship.

The ship - HMS Enterprise - will assess the damage and support the Lebanese government and people to rebuild the port, the defence secretary added.


Mr Raab said the UK would provide help that is

"exactly what is tailored towards the Lebanese needs"


Meanwhile, the Queen said she and Prince Philip were "deeply saddened" by the news.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of those who have been injured or lost their lives, and all those whose homes and livelihoods have been affected," she said in a message of condolence.

Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, who chairs the Commons defence select committee, said the West needed to be "far more greatly involved in helping" Lebanon, which he described as "a country that's been on its knees for decades".


Even before Tuesday's explosion, tensions were high in Lebanon, with street demonstrations against the government's handling of the worst economic crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.

Many blame the ruling elite, who have dominated politics for years. People have to deal with daily power cuts, a lack of safe drinking water and limited public healthcare.



The whole city was shaken by the explosion


Mr Ellwood said the international community has "taken a step back strategically from the Middle East and Lebanon is paying the price for that".

"There's massive corruption in the government itself - it's poorly governed. Economic crisis - there's a quarter of the people out of work there. And of course they've had their own lockdown issues with Covid-19. On top of that over a million refugees have spilled across from Syria. And I have to say there's been dwindling international support... And now this," he said.

Mr Raab said the "wider challenges facing Lebanon and the region haven't gone away" and that the UK would be "looking at ways in which we can help with their medium term challenges on governance on financial support, given the situation there".

He also said he and Lebanon's PM had discussed the need for "a full, thorough and rigorous investigation to get to the truth" of how the blast happened, adding: "I think the people of Lebanon deserve no less."

Earlier, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer called for the UK to offer Lebanon its "full support" to deal with the crisis.

The SNP's foreign affairs spokesman also called for the UK to give "immediate humanitarian assistance" to Lebanon, as well as enter talks to possibly suspend its state debt.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
×