Israa Seblani
Born1991
Baalbek, Baalbek-Hermel
Lebanon
Alma materBeirut Arab University
OccupationDoctor
SpouseAhmad Sbeih (m. 2020)

Israa Al Seblani (born 1991) is a Lebanese-American physician and endocrinologist. She is a survivor of the 2020 Beirut explosion that occurred on 4 August 2020. Later that month, a video went viral of Seblani having her bridal portraits taken when the explosion occurred.

Biography

Seblani interned at Hammoud Hospital University Medical Center in Sidon.[1]

In 2013, she immigrated to the United States, moving to Michigan City, Indiana then moved to Troy, Michigan to complete a residency in endocrinology at a hospital in Detroit.[2]

Seblani met Ahmad Sbeih, a businessman who owns two clothing stores, in November 2016 at a Starbucks in Beirut, while she was visiting family.[3] She and her husband had been waiting three years to get married, due to protests in Lebanon, the COVID-19 pandemic, and since her husband had been unable to obtain an immigrant visa to leave Lebanon and come to the United States.[4] They had originally wanted to get married in the United States, but chose to have the wedding in Lebanon due to difficulty obtaining a visa for Sbeih.[5] Seblani has been pleading with federal government officials in the United States to speed up her husband's visa.[4] She returned to Lebanon in July 2020 for her wedding.[6]

On 4 August 2020, Seblani was posing for bridal portraits outside of the Le Grey Hotel in Saifi Village before her wedding.[3][7] During the photoshoot an explosion occurred at the Port of Beirut, less than a mile away from where Seblani was standing.[3][7][8] The explosion, caused by more than 2,700 tonnes of ammonium nitrate, killed at least 145 people and left over 5,000 people injured.[9][10][11][12] Her videographer, Mahmoud Nakib, captured the detonation taking place on camera.[13][2][14][15] Her fiancé, Ahmad Sbeih, had stepped away from the photoshoot to grab waters for her and the photographer.[4] Immediately after the blast, Sbeih ran to retrieve Seblani, taking shelter in a nearby restaurant.[4] The couple sustained no physical injuries from the explosion.[4] After calling her family, Seblani ran out to provide medical care to other victims of the blast.[4][16][17] They were married in a ceremony after the explosion.[9][18]

The video of Seblani's photography session during which the explosion occurred became a viral video on the internet.[19][20][21]

Seblani has stated that she loves Lebanon, but feels that after the explosion, living there is not an option due to safety concerns.[16][22][9] She returned to the United States in September 2020.[23] After the explosion, Seblani and her husband have received support in the immigration process from U.S. Senator Gary Peters and U.S. Congresswoman Haley Stevens.[23]

She is a dual citizen of the United States and Lebanon.[24][25]

References

  1. ↑ "Video: Troy doctor survives Beirut blast as she poses in wedding gown". deadlinedetroit.com.
  2. 1 2 Specia, Megan (Aug 6, 2020). "'Now You Are Going to Die': Beirut Bride Recounts Moment of Blast". The New York Times.
  3. 1 2 3 Mohammad, Linah; O'Grady, Siobhán (15 August 2020). "Two couples' wedding photos captured Beirut's devastation. Each brides wondered if the other survived". UnionLeader.com.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "After going viral, the bride from Beirut tells her story". Aug 8, 2020.
  5. ↑ "Bride in Beirut wedding photo shoot speaks about explosion". wlox.com.
  6. ↑ "Bride in viral Beirut blast video is a Doctor from Troy now struggling to return home". WXYZ. Aug 6, 2020.
  7. 1 2 "Footage shows moment Beirut explosion hits as bride poses for photographs – video". The Guardian. Aug 5, 2020.
  8. ↑ "Bride recalls moment Beirut blast rocked her wedding shoot: 'I'm losing my life'". The Times of Israel.
  9. 1 2 3 "Beirut bride seen in viral video says she thought she was 'about to die' | CBC Radio". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 7 August 2020. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  10. ↑ "Beirut bride caught in explosion". PerthNow. Aug 6, 2020.
  11. ↑ Kaur, Harmeet; Murphy, Paul P. (6 August 2020). "One moment, they were filming the bride in her wedding dress. Then came the explosion". CNN.
  12. ↑ "Bride Isra Seblani recalls horrific scenes of Beirut explosions during photo shoot". Global Village Space. Aug 8, 2020.
  13. ↑ "Beirut explosion: 'We don't have dreams any more'". BBC. Aug 7, 2020.
  14. ↑ Jewell, Bryony (Aug 6, 2020). "Beirut: Who is Dr Israa Seblani? Bride was mid-wedding when explosion went off". HITC.
  15. ↑ "Bride 'happy to be alive' after wedding video captures Beirut explosion". wthr.com. 5 August 2020.
  16. 1 2 Nader, Yara Abi; Kanaan, Alaa (Aug 5, 2020). "Lebanese bride happy to be alive after blast cuts short wedding video". Reuters.
  17. ↑ "Beirut Explosion Interrupts Bride's Photoshoot and Leaves 4-Day-Old Baby Fighting For Her Life". Inside Edition. Aug 6, 2020.
  18. ↑ "Lebanese bride posing in wedding video escapes deadly blast". NBC News. 6 August 2020.
  19. ↑ "Viral video of bride during Beirut explosion is Detroit medical student". mlive. Aug 6, 2020.
  20. ↑ "Deadly Beirut blast sweeps away Lebanese bride posing for wedding day". Daily Sabah. Aug 5, 2020.
  21. ↑ "'A lab coat is white, my wedding dress is white:' The woman from a viral video of a bridal shoot interrupted by the Beirut explosion was a doctor who rushed to tend to wounded victims still in her wedding dress". MSN.
  22. ↑ "'Am I going to die?': Lebanese bride's wedding video captures Beirut explosion". The Hindu. Aug 6, 2020.
  23. 1 2 "Troy doctor who survived Beirut blast in wedding dress returns home, awaits husband". FOX 2 Detroit. Sep 18, 2020.
  24. ↑ Frere, Eileen (Aug 7, 2020). "'Am I going to die?': Beirut bride recounts horrific moment explosion hit". ABC7 San Francisco.
  25. ↑ "Beirut's 'fleeing bride' talks to DW | 06.08.2020". Deutsche Welle.
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