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‘I miss her all the time’: The Beirut explosion’s child victims
One year after deadly explosion in Lebanese capital, grieving families who lost their children continue to seek justice.
International
Beirut, Lebanon – August 4, 2020, began as a mundane morning for Samer Tibati, a Syrian worker from Lattakia, living in the semi-industrial Karantina neighbourhood near the Beirut port.
“My daughter Bissan came up to me, told me she loved me, and asked me for some money,” Tibati told Al Jazeera. “She then bought chocolate and gave it to everyone living on our street.”
Later that day, the devastating Beirut port explosion tore through the neighbourhood, badly wounding the seven-year-old girl. He ran to her, cradled her in his arms, and tried to find someone to take them to a hospital.
Tibati hopped on the back of a motorcycle driver who offered them a ride. It took hours until they found a hospital that had room for Bissan.
“It looked like pieces of shrapnel from a bomb pierced into her,” Tibati recalled. “The doctors said it was critical, but I would keep asking every day if she could get better.”
Seven days later, Bissan died.