国际英语新闻:Lebanese president says act of sabotage may have caused massive fire at Beirut's port

BEIRUT, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese President Michel Aoun said Thursday that the massive fire that erupted at Beirut's port earlier in the day may have been caused by an intentional act of sabotage, a technical error, ignorance or negligence, the National News Agency reported.

"In all cases, we must investigate the reasons behind this fire and hold perpetrators accountable as soon as possible," Aoun said at the meeting for the Higher Defense Council.

Aoun stressed that work must currently focus on studying effective measures to ensure that such events do not get repeated in the future.

The massive fire broke out on Thursday is the second following the fire that caused two huge explosions at Beirut's port on Aug. 4, destroying a big part of the city and killing around 190 people while injuring at least 6,000 others.

Civil defense teams and helicopters belonging to the Lebanese army succeeded in controlling most of the fire.

The cause of the fire has not been clear yet, but it took place in a warehouse that contains oil and tire deposits.

Preliminary information revealed that welding work in the warehouse caused the fire.