Selfie Captures Last Moments of Teenager’s Life Before He Is Killed by Car Bomb
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It was Friday 27th December 2013. One moment, a teenager was with his friends in downtown Beirut, smiling and capturing a snapshot of his life. The next moment he became a nameless civilian casualty of a car bomb placed to kill a prominent Lebanese politician. The selfie proved to be the final photo of 16 year old Mohammed Shaar.
Shaar was one of five civilian bystanders killed alongside Mohammed Chatah, a former finance minister critical of Syria and Hezbollah, and his driver. Chatah’s allies blame Shiite Hezbollah for the attack, Hezbollah deny the allegations.
The bomb went off in the bustling downtown shopping district of Beirut while it was teeming with students celebrating the end of semester. Shaar had been sitting with his friends outside Starbucks, enjoying a coffee.
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The montage of pictures – of the conversely smiling and dying 16 year old in his red hoodie – has ignited protest amongst young Lebanese, who see themselves reflected in his story. Young people, caught up in a battle they did not create. On Monday 30th December 2013, hundreds marched to the Starco Building (where the bombing took place) to protest the killing. They held banners reading “We are all Mohammed”, waved the Lebanese flag and left piles of flowers to commemorate the life of their fellow student.
“Every one of us imagined ourselves in that place,” activist Mohammed Estateyeh said outside the Khashakhgi mosque in the Sunni-dominated Beirut neighborhood of Qasqas after Shaar’s burial. “The picture of Mohammed lying on the ground — and the picture just before the explosion — they were four guys who were just hanging out.”
Every now and then, there is an image which truly captures the senselessness of violence – and reveals how an ordinary day in an ordinary life can be shattered by it. This finale selfie, is one such image.
Here are some of the pictures of the blast itself, its victims, the moments where people tried to help Mohammed Shaar, and community events mourning his death:
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Source
It was Friday 27th December 2013. One moment, a teenager was with his friends in downtown Beirut, smiling and capturing a snapshot of his life. The next moment he became a nameless civilian casualty of a car bomb placed to kill a prominent Lebanese politician. The selfie proved to be the final photo of 16 year old Mohammed Shaar.
Shaar was one of five civilian bystanders killed alongside Mohammed Chatah, a former finance minister critical of Syria and Hezbollah, and his driver. Chatah’s allies blame Shiite Hezbollah for the attack, Hezbollah deny the allegations.
The bomb went off in the bustling downtown shopping district of Beirut while it was teeming with students celebrating the end of semester. Shaar had been sitting with his friends outside Starbucks, enjoying a coffee.
The montage of pictures – of the conversely smiling and dying 16 year old in his red hoodie – has ignited protest amongst young Lebanese, who see themselves reflected in his story. Young people, caught up in a battle they did not create. On Monday 30th December 2013, hundreds marched to the Starco Building (where the bombing took place) to protest the killing. They held banners reading “We are all Mohammed”, waved the Lebanese flag and left piles of flowers to commemorate the life of their fellow student.
“Every one of us imagined ourselves in that place,” activist Mohammed Estateyeh said outside the Khashakhgi mosque in the Sunni-dominated Beirut neighborhood of Qasqas after Shaar’s burial. “The picture of Mohammed lying on the ground — and the picture just before the explosion — they were four guys who were just hanging out.”
Every now and then, there is an image which truly captures the senselessness of violence – and reveals how an ordinary day in an ordinary life can be shattered by it. This finale selfie, is one such image.
Here are some of the pictures of the blast itself, its victims, the moments where people tried to help Mohammed Shaar, and community events mourning his death:
Source