BEIRUT: The Lebanese government Wednesday said it wanted officials placed under house arrest over a cataclysmic Beirut blast, as it announced a two-week state of emergency in the capital.

"We call on the military leadership to impose house arrest on all those who organised the storage of ammonium nitrate" at Beirut's port, Information Minister Manal Abdel Samad said, referring to the substance that sparked Tuesday's massive explosion.