Beirut resident Vany Bandikian once dreamt of travelling outside Lebanon, but after a huge explosion wrecked her neighbourhood, all she wants is to stay in the home her father built.
"Never will I leave this home," said the Lebanese-Armenianas she sat in her windowless living room.
"The walls speak to me," she said, the endless din of reconstruction work ringing from outside.
The August 4 blast at Beirut's port killed at least 190 people, injured thousands and ravaged homes across the capital.
Some of the worst-hit areas are home to the city's century-old Armenian community.
More than a month after the explosion, construction workers trudge up and down the stairs of Ms Bandikian's 1930s villa.
Its tall white columns and cast-iron balconies are still standing, but the glass in its windows was blown out by the explosion and the spaces are now covered with sheets of white plastic.
Doors cracked in half lie on the tiled floor and window frames have been dislodged from the walls.
"A lot of people rang me and said: 'Come and live with us'. But I can't. How am I supposed to leave an open house?" said the former French-language teacher, who lives with her sister.
Relatives in the US urged her to emigrate, but she said she was not interested.
"I really feel rooted in Lebanon," said Ms Bandikian.
About 140,000 Armenians live in Lebanon, mostly descendants of those who escaped the mass killings of their people under the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1917.
They are the largest such community in the Middle East and have their own schools and university, as well as seats in the Lebanese Cabinet and parliament.
In Beirut, many live in the Bourj Hammoud neighbourhood, but also in the heavily damaged districts of Geitawi and Mar Mikhael close to the port.
Shop signs in the area are often in Armenian, residents use their own dialect and the elderly often speak halting Arabic.
Though some members of the Armenian community – like many young Lebanese – have emigrated in recent years because of the economic crisis, the older generation is bent on staying.
Berjouhi Kasparian, 90, said that even though she had three children living abroad, she would not leave the Geitawi apartment where she has lived on and off since she was 10.
A scar to the side of her mouth is the only visible sign of the nightmare she experienced on the day of the explosion, four days before her birthday.
She was standing in her kitchen when a cascade of plates and glasses fell on top of her.
With Beirut's hospitals overwhelmed, she had to wait a whole day for someone to dress her wounds.
Ms Bandikian and Ms Kasparian received help to repair their homes from the Lebanese branch of the Armenian General Benevolent Union, a century-old non-profit organisation.
The charity fixed 100 homes and started work on 80 others in blast-affected areas, its Lebanon director, Arine Ghazarian, said.
It hopes to restore 600 homes, not all of them belonging to Armenians.
In areas around the port, the explosion dealt a further blow to households already reeling from Lebanon's worst economic crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.
Three times a week, the union distributes 1,500 meals in Bourj Hammoud and Mar Mikhel, Ms Ghazarian said.
At a home for the elderly in Bourj Hammoud, its manager Sebouh Terzian said he was grateful a donor pledged $22,000 (Dh80,800) to fix the damaged building.
"Hopefully they will come next week and do all the repairs," he said.
The institution also relies on non-governmental organisations to feed its 119 residents.
But for others in the community, the pain of the blast is still raw.
In Mar Mikhael, Dikran Geuzubeuyukian, 58, and his teenage children have received food aid and help to renovate their damaged flat.
But the craftsman said he had mixed feelings about moving back in after the repairs are finished.
From the kitchen, he can see what remains of the port's grain silos, while in the corridor, there is the place where he found his wife Liza, who died in the explosion.
Mr Geuzubeuyukian said they had no choice but to move back in.
"Where else can we go? It's a bit tough for the kids, but I don't know what else to do," " he said.
SPECS
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TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
Sinopharm vaccine explained
The Sinopharm vaccine was created using techniques that have been around for decades.
“This is an inactivated vaccine. Simply what it means is that the virus is taken, cultured and inactivated," said Dr Nawal Al Kaabi, chair of the UAE's National Covid-19 Clinical Management Committee.
"What is left is a skeleton of the virus so it looks like a virus, but it is not live."
This is then injected into the body.
"The body will recognise it and form antibodies but because it is inactive, we will need more than one dose. The body will not develop immunity with one dose," she said.
"You have to be exposed more than one time to what we call the antigen."
The vaccine should offer protection for at least months, but no one knows how long beyond that.
Dr Al Kaabi said early vaccine volunteers in China were given shots last spring and still have antibodies today.
“Since it is inactivated, it will not last forever," she said.
AL%20BOOM
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Real Madrid 2
Vinicius Junior (71') Mariano (90 2')
Barcelona 0
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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List of alleged parties
- May 15 2020: Boris Johnson is said to have attended a Downing Street pizza party
- 27 Nov 2020: PM gives speech at leaving do for his staff
- Dec 10 2020: Staff party held by then-education secretary Gavin Williamson
- Dec 13 2020: Mr Johnson and his then-fiancee Carrie Symonds throw a flat party
- Dec 14 2020: Shaun Bailey holds staff party at Conservative Party headquarters
- Dec 15 2020: PM takes part in a staff quiz
- Dec 18 2020: Downing Street Christmas party
Inside%20Out%202
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In%20the%20Land%20of%20Saints%20and%20Sinners
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What are NFTs?
Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.
You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”
However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.
This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”
This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.
25%20Days%20to%20Aden
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Courses%20at%20Istituto%20Marangoni%2C%20Dubai
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SPEC%20SHEET
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THE SPECS
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 3.9 seconds
Price: Dh230,000
On sale: now
Roll of honour
Who has won what so far in the West Asia Premiership season?
Western Clubs Champions League - Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins; Runners up: Bahrain
Dubai Rugby Sevens - Winners: Dubai Exiles; Runners up: Jebel Ali Dragons
West Asia Premiership - Winners: Jebel Ali Dragons; Runners up: Abu Dhabi Harlequins
UAE Premiership Cup - Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins; Runners up: Dubai Exiles
West Asia Cup - Winners: Bahrain; Runners up: Dubai Exiles
West Asia Trophy - Winners: Dubai Hurricanes; Runners up: DSC Eagles
Final West Asia Premiership standings - 1. Jebel Ali Dragons; 2. Abu Dhabi Harlequins; 3. Bahrain; 4. Dubai Exiles; 5. Dubai Hurricanes; 6. DSC Eagles; 7. Abu Dhabi Saracens
Fixture (UAE Premiership final) - Friday, April 13, Al Ain – Dubai Exiles v Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Racecard
7pm: Abu Dhabi - Conditions (PA) Dh 80,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
7.30pm: Dubai - Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,400m
8pm: Sharjah - Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,600m
8.30pm: Ajman - Handicap (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 2,200m
9pm: Umm Al Quwain - The Entisar - Listed (TB) Dh132,500 (D) 2,000m
9.30pm: Ras Al Khaimah - Rated Conditions (TB) Dh95,000 (D) 1,600m
10pm: Fujairah - Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 1,200m
The biog
Name: Dhabia Khalifa AlQubaisi
Age: 23
How she spends spare time: Playing with cats at the clinic and feeding them
Inspiration: My father. He’s a hard working man who has been through a lot to provide us with everything we need
Favourite book: Attitude, emotions and the psychology of cats by Dr Nicholes Dodman
Favourit film: 101 Dalmatians - it remind me of my childhood and began my love of dogs
Word of advice: By being patient, good things will come and by staying positive you’ll have the will to continue to love what you're doing
The specs
Engine: 4 liquid-cooled permanent magnet synchronous electric motors placed at each wheel
Battery: Rimac 120kWh Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide (LiNiMnCoO2) chemistry
Power: 1877bhp
Torque: 2300Nm
Price: Dh7,500,00
On sale: Now
