The buildings of Beirut may have been reduced to rubble, but the spirit of its people cannot be broken, one of the city's most renowned designers has vowed.
Elie Saab shared an optimistic message as he revealed the damage caused to his atelier in the Lebanese capital by the August 4 explosion.
The blast at Beirut's port, which has claimed more than 170 lives and left thousands more injured and homeless, ravaged the couturier's offices and personal home.
"I saw my son covered in blood; I could not believe it. I said OK, he is wounded, but it was OK, it was just cuts to his head and arms," Saab told Reuters this week, recalling the moment a vast stock of ammonium nitrate detonated.
"But it was 15 minutes that felt like two days long. It was not just because it is a father and son thing, it was because we all work together like one family under one roof."
Saab, who has dressed the likes of Halle Berry, Beyonce and Angelina Jolie in his ethereal creations, has 200 staff members working at his headquarters.
His home, a few hundred metres from the city's port, was completely destroyed.
The designer, 56, told Reuters the blast brought back memories of Lebanon's civil war.
"It was the same smell, the same dust, the broken glass. Honestly, we did not want to relive this and it was not necessary," he said.
"This is a huge setback but we have to be like Beirut – every time dusting itself off and returning to the way it was."
Saab, who founded his eponymous label in 1982, said his team hope to resume work at the brand's office this week, but his home will have to be rebuilt.
"We must go on ... It does not become us as Lebanese to give up. That is the doable part. But the biggest loss is the people you can't bring back."
The designer is one of a number of Beiruti couturiers whose ateliers were destroyed by the explosion.
Zuhair Murad's 11-storey office was devastated, claiming the designer's archives and collections.
The eponymous label, founded in 1997, was located on Charles Helou Avenue. Murad shared a look inside the devastated premises on his personal Instagram account, as he revealed his "heart is broken".
"Can’t stop crying ... the efforts of years went in a moment. Thank God for everything."
Design duo Azzi & Osta's atelier was ripped open by the blast, leaving the building's facade with gaping holes.
Couturier Rabih Kayrouz, meanwhile, suffered a small brain haemorrhage and two clots as a result of the blast, as well as needing 22 stitches.
Kayrouz's atelier was fewer than 900 metres from the site of the blast.
"Words are not enough. We will not forget. We will judge. We will rebuild ... And we will dance," the designer wrote in a poignant social media post following the disaster.
if you go
The flights
Fly direct to Kutaisi with Flydubai from Dh925 return, including taxes. The flight takes 3.5 hours. From there, Svaneti is a four-hour drive. The driving time from Tbilisi is eight hours.
The trip
The cost of the Svaneti trip is US$2,000 (Dh7,345) for 10 days, including food, guiding, accommodation and transfers from and to Tbilisi or Kutaisi. This summer the TCT is also offering a 5-day hike in Armenia for $1,200 (Dh4,407) per person. For further information, visit www.transcaucasiantrail.org/en/hike/
Stree
Producer: Maddock Films, Jio Movies
Director: Amar Kaushik
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi, Aparshakti Khurana, Abhishek Banerjee
Rating: 3.5
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
More on Quran memorisation:
Company name: Farmin
Date started: March 2019
Founder: Dr Ali Al Hammadi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: AgriTech
Initial investment: None to date
Partners/Incubators: UAE Space Agency/Krypto Labs
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Gran Gala del Calcio 2019 winners
Best Player: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus)
Best Coach: Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta)
Best Referee: Gianluca Rocchi
Best Goal: Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria vs Napoli)
Best Team: Atalanta
Best XI: Samir Handanovic (Inter); Aleksandar Kolarov (Roma), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli), Joao Cancelo (Juventus*); Miralem Pjanic (Juventus), Josip Ilicic (Atalanta), Nicolo Barella (Cagliari*); Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria), Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Duvan Zapata (Atalanta)
Serie B Best Young Player: Sandro Tonali (Brescia)
Best Women’s Goal: Thaisa (Milan vs Juventus)
Best Women’s Player: Manuela Giugliano (Milan)
Best Women’s XI: Laura Giuliani (Milan); Alia Guagni (Fiorentina), Sara Gama (Juventus), Cecilia Salvai (Juventus), Elisa Bartoli (Roma); Aurora Galli (Juventus), Manuela Giugliano (Roma), Valentina Cernoia (Juventus); Valentina Giacinti (Milan), Ilaria Mauro (Fiorentina), Barbara Bonansea (Juventus)
Key features of new policy
Pupils to learn coding and other vocational skills from Grade 6
Exams to test critical thinking and application of knowledge
A new National Assessment Centre, PARAKH (Performance, Assessment, Review and Analysis for Holistic Development) will form the standard for schools
Schools to implement online system to encouraging transparency and accountability
