Fairuz surrounded by her two sons, Ziad Rahbani and Hali Rahbani. Undated photograph. (Credit: NNA)
Two coffins, two brothers departing just months apart — no mother, even at age 90, should have to endure such pain. With Hali's passing after Ziad's, Fairuz is left with only her "little" youngest, Rima, out of her four children. Layal, the third, died after suffering a stroke at the age of 28, in 1988.Fairuz was only 23 years old, when Hali was born in 1958, two years after Ziad. The summer before, under the demanding mentorship of the Rahbani brothers — her husband and brother-in-law — she'd had a triumphant first performance at the Baalbeck Festival; her star was rising in the Arab music world. Very soon, the joy of welcoming her child turned into anxiety. Severely disabled as a result of childhood meningitis, Hali was not only nearly quadriplegic: he suffered from developmental delays complicated by blindness...
Two coffins, two brothers departing just months apart — no mother, even at age 90, should have to endure such pain. With Hali's passing after Ziad's, Fairuz is left with only her "little" youngest, Rima, out of her four children. Layal, the third, died after suffering a stroke at the age of 28, in 1988.Fairuz was only 23 years old, when Hali was born in 1958, two years after Ziad. The summer before, under the demanding mentorship of the Rahbani brothers — her husband and brother-in-law — she'd had a triumphant first performance at the Baalbeck Festival; her star was rising in the Arab music world. Very soon, the joy of welcoming her child turned into anxiety. Severely disabled as a result of childhood meningitis, Hali was not only nearly quadriplegic: he suffered from developmental delays complicated by...
