Israa Seblani was posing for her wedding day photos when a deadly explosion blasted through the Lebanese capital. In an interview with DW, the doctor describes the moment, caught on film by her videographer.
Image: DW
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It was her wedding day and Dr. Israa Seblani, 29, was dressed all in white, posing for a video meant to commemorate the celebration in Beirut, Lebanon, when a deadly blast ripped through the capital on Tuesday.
The footage from videographer Mahmoud Nakib captured the instant a powerful wave of pressure from the explosion rolled through the city. The blast killed at least 135 people and injured over 5,000.
In the video, Seblani can be seen smiling and posing in her wedding dress in a city square when suddenly the roar of the blast can be heard. A bouquet of flowers on the ground is blown out of the shot and the bride's veil and the skirt of her dress are thrown back by the force of the shock.
The camera then pulls to the left. Smoke and debris can be seen as the cameraman appears to get his bearings. Seblani and a man in a suit — her husband, Ahmad Subeih — appear in the shot as they flee the devastated square.
Neither the camera crew nor the wedding couple was injured.
Bride asks, 'Am I going to die?'
Speaking with DW, Seblani, a Lebanese doctor, recounted the dramatic scene.
"At that moment, when the explosion happened, all that came to my mind was: now I'm losing my life. I am losing my husband," Seblani said in a video interview from Beirut on Friday. "No more, as we say, happy ever after, a happy ending of the love story."
Seblani told how she had arrived in Lebanon from the US, where she lives and works, three weeks earlier to prepare for her wedding.
"I never imagined…such a thing could happen, especially on my wedding day," she said.
"I was asking myself: when am I going to die? How am I going to die? Am I going to feel it?"
Beirut's 'fleeing bride'
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Devastation in a 'city of life'
Describing the aftermath in the Lebanese capital, Seblani said it hurts her to see the city destroyed.
"My heart goes [out] to the people who died and people who got injured. Also, the people who are still buried under the buildings," she said.
She shared her hopes of Beirut making a swift recovery from the blast.
"I hope all of this ends soon. And that life will come back as we know it in Beirut, a city of life," she said. "People in Beirut, and all over Lebanon, they love to live."
When asked if she would consider redoing her wedding video, the doctor said it wouldn't be appropriate.
"There is no more happiness. After seeing people dying and all of this damage going through my country, how can I be happy? Of course not."
In pictures: Beirut blast aftermath — destruction, chaos and protests
A powerful explosion rocked the Lebanese capital of Beirut, killing at least 150 people and injuring thousands more. Residents have taken to the streets to demand government reforms and resignations over the blast.
Image: Getty Images/D. Carde
Panic in Beirut
Two immense blasts shook Beirut and the surrounding areas of the Lebanese capital, prompting panic as residents rushed to safety. "I have never in my life seen a disaster this big," Beirut's governor told local TV.
Image: Reuters/M. Azakir
Blasts felt in city's outskirts
The explosions, centered in Beirut's port region, were felt throughout the capital. Even residents in the city's outskirts reported hearing the blast, with some saying their windows were shattered.
Image: Reuters/K. Sokhn
Dozens killed, thousands injured
Lebanon's Health Ministry said at least 100 people were killed and more than 4,000 others were injured.
Image: Reuters/M. Azakir
'Unacceptable' ammonium nitrate stock
Prime Minister Hassan Diab said that a large stockpile of 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate in a warehouse at the port had caused the second, larger explosion. "It is unacceptable that a shipment of 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate has been present for six years in a warehouse, without taking preventive measures," Diab said.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/STR
Race to save survivors
More than 30 Red Cross teams raced to the scene, with many locals lending a hand to aid rescue efforts. Hospitals warned that they were quickly filled beyond capacity — and called for blood donations as well as generators to help keep the electricity on.
Image: picture-alliance/AA/H. Shbaro
Felt as far away as Cyprus
The blasts struck with the force of a 3.5 magnitude earthquake, according to Germany's
geosciences center GFZ. Residents in Cyprus, some 110 miles (180 km) across the sea from Beirut, reported hearing and feeling the blast.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/STR
People are 'asking for their loved ones'
DW's Bassel Aridi said people were using social media to try to track down their loved ones after the explosions. Aridi also visited a hospital in Beirut after the blasts. "What I saw in the hospital was so dramatic. All the hospitals have announced that they are totally overloaded."
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/H. Ammar
Two-week state of emergency
Lebanese authorities fear many more people are buried beneath rubble. President Michel Aoun scheduled an emergency Cabinet meeting for Wednesday and said a two-week state of emergency should be declared.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/STR
Lebanon faces double-blow
The devastating blasts come as Lebanon experiences severe economic turbulence, with many people taking to the streets in recent months to protest the financial situation. Prime Minister Hassan Diab declared that Wednesday would be a national day of mourning for the victims of the explosion.
Image: Getty Images/D. Carde
Protesters demand reforms and resignations
Thousands of protesters took to the streets four days after the explosion, blaming the blast on government corruption and mismanagement boiling. Protesters demanded government resignations and fresh elections, with many occupying government ministries. Police responded with tear gas.
Image: Reuters/G. Tomasevic
First resignation
Information Minister Manal Abdel Samad became the first government minister to resign in the wake of the blast, five days after it took place. "After the enormous Beirut catastrophe, I announce my resignation from government," she said in a statement carried by local media. She apologized to the people of Beirut for failing them.
Image: Getty Images/AFP
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This story has been updated to reflect that neither the camera crew nor the wedding couple was injured.
