At least 14 people have died in the collapse of residential buildings in the Lebanese city of Tripoli, Reuters reported. Rescue operations have ended, BTA reported.
According to the Director General of the Lebanese Civil Defense Imad Khreis, quoted by the Lebanese news agency NNA, rescue teams have pulled the bodies of 14 dead from under the rubble and managed to save eight people. The incident occurred in the Bab al-Thabane neighborhood in the northern city of Tripoli.
Lebanese authorities announced yesterday that two neighboring residential buildings had collapsed. Tripoli City Council Chairman Abdel Hamid Karameh said he could not confirm how many people were still missing.
Earlier, the head of the civil defense rescue service said that a total of 22 people were living in the two buildings.
In recent weeks, Tripoli, Lebanon's second largest city, has seen other collapses of old residential buildings. According to municipal officials, these incidents highlight the serious deterioration of the infrastructure and its long-standing neglect.