Nino Kalos for August 4 in Beirut 1. August 4, 2020: the moment that broke Beirut At 18:08 on August 4, 2020, a massive explosion tore through the port of Beirut. A roar, a cloud, a shockwave that swept across the city like a hurricane. More than 200 lives lost, thousands injured, entire neighborhoods erased, 300,000 people left without a home. But the tragedy was not only physical: it was moral. Lebanon discovered that 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate had been abandoned for ye

By: Alain Seckler When Singapore became independent in 1965, its chances of survival appeared slim. Following its short-lived association with Malaysia, the country faced daunting challenges. It had virtually no natural resources, while ethnic tensions among the Chinese, Malay, Indian, and other communities were compounded by severe unemployment and widespread poverty. Singapore was, in many respects, an urban slum. Yet within a single generation, under the visionary leaders