Iconic Lebanese singer Fairuz receives condolences during the funeral ceremony of her son, musician and composer Ziad Rahbani, at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Dormition in Mhaidseh, Bikfaya in Mount Lebanon, northeast of Beirut, on July 28, 2025. (Credit: Joseph Eid/AFP)
BEIRUT — Iconic Lebanese singer Fairuz lost her second son, Hali Rahbani, on Thursday just months after the death of her son Ziad Rahbani, a renowned composer and playwright.
Hali was 68 years old and had lived with the long-term effects of a bout of childhood meningitis.
Fairuz had four children with her husband, composer Assi Rahbani, who died of a brain hemorrhage in 1986. In addition to Ziad and Hali, she is also the mother of Layal, who died in 1988, two years after Assi, at the age of 28 from a stroke, and Rima, who is now Fairuz's only living child.
In a statement shared on X, Information Minister Paul Morcos offered his condolences to Fairuz, calling Hali's death "a painful loss for a family that has given Lebanon and the world an invaluable artistic and human legacy."
Ziad Rahbani died on July 25, 2025, at the age of 69 from a heart attack after a long sickness. He was mourned nation-wide and his funeral saw Fairuz give a rare public appearance. Ziad was known for his well-loved and innovating music compositions, often in collaboration with his mother, as well as satirical plays that criticized the country's powerful.
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