Lebanon's prime minister has announced his government's resignation, saying a huge explosion that devastated Beirut and triggered public outrage was the result of endemic corruption.
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The August 4 detonation at a port warehouse of what authorities said was more than 2000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate killed at least 163 people, injured more than 6000 and destroyed swathes of the capital, compounding months of political and economic meltdown.
"Today we follow the will of the people in their demand to hold accountable those responsible for the disaster that has been in hiding for seven years," Prime Minister Hassan Diab said in a speech on Monday.
He blamed the disaster on endemic corruption and said those responsible should be ashamed because their actions had led to a catastrophe "beyond description".
"I said before that corruption is rooted in every lever of the state but I have discovered that corruption is greater than the state," he said, pointing to a political elite for preventing change and saying his government faced a brick wall on reforms.
While Diab's move attempted to respond to popular anger about the blast, it also plunged Lebanese politics deeper into turmoil and may further hamper already-stalled talks with the International Monetary Fund on a financial rescue plan.
The talks, launched in May, were put on hold due to inaction on reforms and a row between the government, banks and politicians over the scale of vast financial losses.
President Michel Aoun accepted the resignation and asked Diab's government - formed in January with the backing of Iran's powerful Hezbollah group and its allies - to stay as a caretaker until a new cabinet is formed, a televised announcement said.
At the White House, US President Donald Trump said the explosion had triggered what he called "a revolution" but did not comment further.
Before Diab's announcement, demonstrations broke out for a third day in central Beirut, with some protesters hurling rocks at security forces guarding an entrance leading to the parliament building, who responded with tear gas.
For many ordinary Lebanese, the explosion was the last straw in a protracted crisis over the collapse of the economy, corruption, waste and dysfunctional governance, and they have taken to the streets demanding root-and-branch change.
The system of government requires Aoun to consult with parliamentary blocs on who should be the next prime minister and he is obliged to designate the candidate with the greatest level of support among parliamentarians.
The Lebanese army said on Monday that another five bodies were pulled from the rubble, raising the death toll to 163. Search and rescue operations continued.
Anti-government protests in the past two days have been the biggest since October, when angry demonstrations spread over an economic crisis rooted in pervasive graft, mismanagement and high-level unaccountability.
An donor conference of countries including Australia raised pledges worth nearly 253 million euros ($A415 million) on Sunday for immediate humanitarian relief but countries are demanding transparency over how the aid is used.
Australian Associated Press