Thank God for Bingo: Lives spared from Beirut Car Bomb
Friday night in Beirut, and a little after midnight, a car bomb goes off in the residential neighborhood, Jadeide, east of Beirut. Roland Bashi shop owner of Bashi pret-a-porter women's wear, suffered the greatest brunt of the blast. His shop was decimated: mangled wires, windows blown out, and a conical shaped crater right on the outisde the doorstep. When asked
what he thinks: "I don't know, I've never seen this before, what do you want me to say?" His son who speaks better English explains that the neighborhood is quiet, "my father doesn't know what to feel, maybe he feels angry, but seems more shell shocked." There's a parking lot next to the shop.
Abrahim, a 24 year old living two buildings over says he heard the blast. The windows in his flat, unlike others did not shatter, because as he explains the windows were open. He said: "I heard the blast, saw people at home bend over, and looked out the window. There was a smoky hole". When asked what he thought took place, he said he lived in a neighorbood where nothing takes place, it was newly rebuilt since after the war.
A police talking to reporters explains in Arabic that so far that have been no dead, some six injured. Reports on the ground become messy. Some explain that there were four armed men who showed up, and apparently took someone away. Another description is that the car bomb exploded in a stolen car, which apparently had been spotted in the neighborhood for
the past two days. Abrahim said that they wanted to park in front of the bingo parlor, but had been turned away. Then in a contemplative way, he said: "It is good that the bingo tonight over-ran as if it hadn't, many people would have died."
He continued to explain that the neighborhood was made up of the Lebanese Forces, a hardcore militant christian faction. When asked if things got worse, whether he would take arms: "I would take arms, but to fight my enemy." And who's his enemy? "I don't know, but I would fight." Could the retaliation be in connection to the beating pro-Syrian civilians were given by Lebanese Forces youths the other day? If so, the escalation of tension has already gotten out of hand, and there will be some very difficult strides to take to keep vigilanteeism off the streets.
Deeb, another on the sight, seemed disheartened. What did it mean to him, he explained in Arabic: "It's the Syrians, they want to make conflict so they can come back." Deeb, of Armenian origins, fought for two separate factions during the war starting at the age of 15. He explained he had been shot in the chest and the right leg. "Haram, shame for Lebanon. This is not a good country." Although he does not want his two children to experience the war he had grown up and fought in, he explained if it came down to it, he would pick up arms against as much as he hated it. And his target is anyone connected to what he thought were connected to the Syrian instigation methods.
The events over the night, will certainly not help ease the way to democracy. The downturned heads of people in the street may not be a mellow dramatic expression, rather a reflection of what is going on in the heart of the country. A middle eastern acceptance of fatalism which lead Abraham to say: "Thank God for Bingo!."
what he thinks: "I don't know, I've never seen this before, what do you want me to say?" His son who speaks better English explains that the neighborhood is quiet, "my father doesn't know what to feel, maybe he feels angry, but seems more shell shocked." There's a parking lot next to the shop.
Abrahim, a 24 year old living two buildings over says he heard the blast. The windows in his flat, unlike others did not shatter, because as he explains the windows were open. He said: "I heard the blast, saw people at home bend over, and looked out the window. There was a smoky hole". When asked what he thought took place, he said he lived in a neighorbood where nothing takes place, it was newly rebuilt since after the war.
A police talking to reporters explains in Arabic that so far that have been no dead, some six injured. Reports on the ground become messy. Some explain that there were four armed men who showed up, and apparently took someone away. Another description is that the car bomb exploded in a stolen car, which apparently had been spotted in the neighborhood for
the past two days. Abrahim said that they wanted to park in front of the bingo parlor, but had been turned away. Then in a contemplative way, he said: "It is good that the bingo tonight over-ran as if it hadn't, many people would have died."
He continued to explain that the neighborhood was made up of the Lebanese Forces, a hardcore militant christian faction. When asked if things got worse, whether he would take arms: "I would take arms, but to fight my enemy." And who's his enemy? "I don't know, but I would fight." Could the retaliation be in connection to the beating pro-Syrian civilians were given by Lebanese Forces youths the other day? If so, the escalation of tension has already gotten out of hand, and there will be some very difficult strides to take to keep vigilanteeism off the streets.
Deeb, another on the sight, seemed disheartened. What did it mean to him, he explained in Arabic: "It's the Syrians, they want to make conflict so they can come back." Deeb, of Armenian origins, fought for two separate factions during the war starting at the age of 15. He explained he had been shot in the chest and the right leg. "Haram, shame for Lebanon. This is not a good country." Although he does not want his two children to experience the war he had grown up and fought in, he explained if it came down to it, he would pick up arms against as much as he hated it. And his target is anyone connected to what he thought were connected to the Syrian instigation methods.
The events over the night, will certainly not help ease the way to democracy. The downturned heads of people in the street may not be a mellow dramatic expression, rather a reflection of what is going on in the heart of the country. A middle eastern acceptance of fatalism which lead Abraham to say: "Thank God for Bingo!."
posted by Irina Prentice at 12:10 PM
1 Comments:
Nice blog
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