Participants in the conference organized Tuesday at the Moudjahid Museum, on the occasion of the commemoration of the 62nd anniversary of the Béryl nuclear explosion, affirmed that what colonial France did in southern Algeria was a crime against imprescriptible humanity.
In his speech entitled “comparative study between the nuclear accidents of Beryl and Chernobyl”, the nuclear engineering researcher, Amar Mansouri, specified that “this crime against humanity exposed the horror of French colonization”, adding that “France must fully assume its responsibilities in the nuclear explosions it committed in Algeria, including that of Béryl in Tamanrasset on the fateful May 1, 1962.”
Unique of its kind, this explosion in the Taourirt Tan Afella mountain in In Ecker caused “an immense radioactive cloud which flew over inhabited areas of Algeria, then Libya before progressing towards other regions of Africa, not to mention tons of radioactive lava which continues to threaten the environment and human beings to this day,” he explained.
The researcher further indicated that the Beryl explosion, which was of the same magnitude as that of Chernobyl, was a real catastrophe, with Algerian victims and the destruction of fauna and flora.
As for the lava that formed following the explosion, the speaker explained that the analyzes carried out by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in 2005, and by a specialized French laboratory, in 2009 , had demonstrated that it was “highly radioactive” and presented “a major risk to the environment, humans and animals”.
He regretted that this nuclear explosion was not classified among the underground explosions in the world despite the seriousness of its effects, emphasizing “the imperative to alert international public opinion to the seriousness of the situation through the intensification of conferences and the mass production of articles on this subject.
In his speech, the law teacher, Allaoua Laïb, raised the issue of nuclear explosions from a legal point of view. “France did not respect the standards put in place by the IAEA in its explosions carried out in the Algerian desert, including that of Béryl, which is why it must assume its legal and moral responsibility towards human beings and the “environment”, he maintained, adding that international law “commits him to compensate the victims of this crime with imprescriptible effects”.
As part of the commemoration of this anniversary, an exhibition on the Béryl explosion was organized and a documentary film entitled “In Ecker, laying bare the crime” was screened.
In addition to the president of the National Human Rights Council (CNDH), Abdelmadjid Zaâlani, teachers, researchers, mujahideen and representatives of several organizations and sectors attended the conference.
APS
