Heroic Beirut nurse reunited with babies she saved from port explosion

Lebanese nurse Pamela Zeinoun, who was hailed a national hero for rescuing 3 newborns at St George Hospital University Medical Center during August 4 Beirut explosion, reunited with them on Wednesday, the blast’s first anniversary. (Supplied)
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Updated 05 August 2021
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Heroic Beirut nurse reunited with babies she saved from port explosion

  • As she hugged them a year later, Pamela Zeinoun said she felt like she gave them the same warmth as when she carried them to safety
  • The nurse said it felt great to see the children are growing up healthily, safely and away from danger

BEIRUT: A nurse hailed as a national hero for rescuing three premature babies from a hospital wrecked by the explosion at Beirut’s port a year ago was reunited with them on Wednesday, the first anniversary of the blast.
Pamela Zeinoun was working at St. George Hospital University Medical Center, less than a kilometer from the port, when the massive explosion sent a devastating shock wave through the city.
Without knowing what had happened, she instinctively scooped up a twin brother and sister and a third baby from their cots in the damaged neonatal intensive care unit on the hospital’s fourth floor and carried them to safety.

“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing,” Zeinoun told Arab News. “The feeling of holding again the babies who I had saved a year ago was indescribable — so warm and empathetic.”
The twins, Ali and Sidra, and the third baby, Noah, were brought by their families to the hospital, which was forced to close because of the damage caused by the explosion but has partly reopened, to meet Zeinoun. Noah’s family left Lebanon after the explosion
A photo of the reunion was taken at the spot where a news photographer captured one of the most enduring images of the disaster: a dust-covered Zeinoun clutching the three babies, cradling a phone with her neck.
“It was so heartwarming and emotional, especially when I tried to carry them in one go,” said Zeinoun who recalled how tiny they were 12 months ago and how they have grown since. “They looked so cute, funny and lovable to play with. I felt I was giving them the same warmness I had given them on Aug. 4 in 2020.”
She said it felt great to see the children are growing up healthily, safely and away from danger.
Zeinoun described the explosion as a “heartbreaking catastrophe” and said she sympathized with all the families and victims who lost loved ones. In her hospital alone, the blast killed 22 people.
“When I see the casualties’ families trying to find answers to what happened, I feel like their daughter … I just wish that justice would prevail and we find out who is behind what happened,” she added.
Describing the scene inside her ward after the explosion, she said the ceiling had collapsed and the room was littered with debris, furniture and toppled medical equipment.
Amid the confusion, as she held the three infants she stopped to answer a ringing telephone in the emergency room, a moment that was captured by Lebanese photojournalist Bilal Jawich. His photo went viral worldwide, appearing on news sites and TV channels and social media platforms.
A new father who was visiting his newborn baby on the day of the explosion, helped Zeinoun by lifting metal shelves that had fallen onto incubators so that she could rescue the infants. Despite all the damage, chaos and broken elevators, the nurse managed to carry the newborns down four floors and out of the hospital to safety.
She then walked with them in her arms for nearly 5km through streets littered with rubble and wreckage before the driver of a car took them to another hospital.
On Wednesday’s anniversary, the people of Lebanon mourned those who were killed and injured in what was one of the most powerful non-nuclear explosions in history. More than 200 people died, more than 6,500 were injured and an estimated 300,000 were left homeless.


UN to bolster UNIFIL for post-truce support in Lebanon, peacekeeping chief says

Updated 6 sec ago
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UN to bolster UNIFIL for post-truce support in Lebanon, peacekeeping chief says

“I think that has to be very clear. Implementing the 1701 is the responsibility of the parties,” said Lacroix
Lacroix said the peacekeeping mission would work with the Lebanese army to “support the implementation of a settlement

BEIRUT: The United Nations intends to bolster its peacekeeping mission in Lebanon to better support the Lebanese army once a truce is agreed but would not directly enforce a ceasefire, UN peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix said on Thursday.
The peacekeeping mission known as UNIFIL is deployed in southern Lebanon to monitor the demarcation line with Israel, an area that has seen more than a year of hostilities between Israeli troops and Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters.
Diplomatic efforts to end the fighting have centered on UN resolution 1701, which ended the last round of conflict between the two heavily-armed foes in 2006 and requires Hezbollah to remove fighters and weapons from areas between the border and the Litani River, which runs about 30 km (around 20 miles) from Lebanon’s southern border.
Israel has for years accused UNIFIL of failing to implement the resolution, and now says peacekeepers must get out of the way as Israeli troops fight Hezbollah. UNIFIL troops have refused to leave their posts, despite repeated Israeli attacks that have wounded peacekeepers.
“I think that has to be very clear. Implementing the 1701 is the responsibility of the parties,” said Lacroix, speaking to reporters on a three-day visit to Lebanon. “UNIFIL has a supportive role, and there is a lot of substance in that supporting role.”
Lacroix said the peacekeeping mission would work with the Lebanese army to “support the implementation of a settlement” and was already in discussions with contributing nations to assess UNIFIL’s needs, including with advanced technology, without necessarily increasing troop numbers.
Following a truce, UNIFIL’s capacities could be expanded to include clearing explosive devices and reopening roads.
“We don’t necessarily think in terms of numbers, we think in terms of what would be the needs and how could they be fulfilled,” he said.
Lacroix said the UN and several member states have repeatedly called on all parties to ensure the safety of peacekeepers and that while incidents had not stopped, they had not increased following international condemnation.

The United Nations intends to bolster its peacekeeping mission in Lebanon to better support the Lebanese army once a truce is agreed but would not directly enforce a ceasefire, UN peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix said on Thursday. (AFP/File)

Lebanon says at least three killed in Israeli strike on Baalbek

Updated 14 November 2024
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Lebanon says at least three killed in Israeli strike on Baalbek

  • A ministry statement said body parts were recovered from the site

BEIRUT: Lebanon’s health ministry said at least three people were killed in an Israeli strike Thursday on the main eastern city of Baalbek.
“The Israeli enemy strike... in Baalbek killed three people, in an initial toll,” a ministry statement said, adding that “body parts were recovered from the site and their identities are being verified.”


Cafe in Libya champions recycling and sustainability

Updated 14 November 2024
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Cafe in Libya champions recycling and sustainability

  • Lamma, which means “gathering” or “hangout” in Arabic, has become a cultural hub for locals and other visitors
  • Its central mission, its owner said, is raising awareness of an eco-friendly lifestyle in Libya

TRIPOLI: In Libya’s capital, a cafe’s sleek exterior gives little hint of the vibrant space inside, built entirely from recycled materials to promote sustainability in a country recovering from years of war.
Lamma, which means “gathering” or “hangout” in Arabic, has become a cultural hub for locals and other visitors, featuring an art gallery that showcases Libyan artists, and hosts events and workshops.
But its central mission, its owner said, is raising awareness of an eco-friendly lifestyle in Libya, where green initiatives are scarce as people grapple with the aftermath of a gruelling conflict.
“We use materials that were abandoned in the streets, such as rubber from tires, wood from trees and construction waste” to build the cafe, said Louay Omran Burwais, an architect who designed and founded Lamma.
“The idea is to show people that what is thrown in the street and may seem ugly or useless is actually still valuable,” he told AFP.
Libya was hurled into war after a NATO-backed uprising led to the overthrow and killing of dictator Muammar Qaddafi, followed by years of fighting between militias, mercenaries and jihadists.
Power remains split between a UN-recognized government and a rival authority in the east.
Behind the long, narrow door into Lamma, visitors are greeted with a kaleidoscope of colors and shapes.
The plant-covered walls contrast with a web of suspended metal scraps, alcoves and slide tunnels that children swoop down through.
“There are no places like this in Libya,” said Roula Ajjawi, Lamma’s art director. “We base everything on one aspect that we consider very important: recycling.”
Families gather at Lamma on Thursdays, the start of the Libyan weekend, when the cafe holds art workshops for children.
Others borrow books from the venue’s small library.
Burwais says his team hopes recycling and other eco-friendly practices, which remain rare, start up in Libya, which currently has no recycling facilities.
Visitors to Lamma will recognize familiar everyday objects repurposed throughout the space, Burwais said, but they will “start seeing them differently. We are here to foster a new mindset.”
In Libya, the plastic, metal, and glass left from over a decade of civil war destruction are rarely, if ever, reused or recycled, Ajjawi said.
More often, they are abandoned in nature and on the streets, occasionally washed into the Mediterranean by rain and wind.
But with initiatives like Lamma, objects once destined for the landfill are transformed into works of art — a concept now catching on with locals.
“I love this place,” said Riyad Youssef, now a Lamma regular. “The food is great, the service is excellent, and I appreciate the commitment to reducing waste. Every idea here is amazing.”


Turkiye probes event spending in opposition-run cities

Updated 14 November 2024
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Turkiye probes event spending in opposition-run cities

  • The office said late on Wednesday it would investigate “irregular spendings“
  • The Ankara chief prosecutor’s office has also launched an investigation into two concerts

ISTANBUL: The Istanbul chief prosecutor’s office has opened a probe into allegations of illicit expenditures at some public events organized by the Istanbul municipality, marking the latest legal challenge to opposition-run districts in Turkiye.
The office said late on Wednesday it would investigate “irregular spendings” to determine whether the public experienced financial harm, without elaborating.
The Ankara chief prosecutor’s office has also launched an investigation into two concerts organized by the Ankara municipality on Republic Day celebrations on Oct. 29.
The municipalities, which are Turkiye’s two largest cities and both run by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), deny the allegations.
Speaking at a career fair on Thursday, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu — who is seen as a potential future challenger to President Tayyip Erdogan — said the probes amounted to “reputation assassination.” The Istanbul municipality did not comment further on the probe when contacted by Reuters.
Late last month the CHP mayor of Istanbul’s Esenyurt district was arrested and accused of belonging to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), charges he and his party reject.
Since then, the interior ministry dismissed and replaced elected mayors from the pro-Kurdish DEM party in some southeastern cities for alleged ties to militants, charges they and their party also deny.


Israeli attacks on Syria’s Damascus kill 15, state media says

People check the damage following a reported Israeli strike in the Mazzeh district of Damascus on November 14, 2024. (AFP)
Updated 14 November 2024
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Israeli attacks on Syria’s Damascus kill 15, state media says

  • The buildings are located in the suburbs of Mazzeh and Qudsaya, both west of the capital, the SANA report said

DUBAI: Fifteen people were killed and 16 injured in Israeli attacks on a number of residential buildings in suburbs of the Syrian capital Damascus on Thursday, state news agency SANA reported, citing a Syrian military source.
The buildings are located in the suburbs of Mazzeh and Qudsaya, both west of the capital, the SANA report said.
Israeli army radio said the targets of the attack in Damascus were a headquarters of the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad and what it described as other assets, without elaborating.
Israel has been carrying out strikes against Iran-linked targets in Syria for years but has ramped up such raids since last year’s Oct. 7 attack by Palestinian group Hamas on Israeli territory that sparked the Gaza war.
Commanders in Lebanon’s Hezbollah armed group and Iran’s Revolutionary Guards based in Syria have been known to reside in Mazzeh, according to residents who fled after recent strikes that killed some key figures from the groups.
Mazzeh’s high rise blocks have been used by the authorities in the past to house leaders of Palestinian factions including Hamas and Islamic Jihad.