A Fatal Tradition

Gun shootings at weddings and funerals in Lebanon persist despite claiming lives

By Tamara Sleiman, Contributing Writer

The invitees get dressed, take photographs, and drive towards the venue where the wedding is held. This scenario occurs repeatedly during the summer vacation in Lebanon. The Lebanese community values its weddings. The bride and groom, and their families, save a lot of money for the wedding – dinner, flowers, music, lights, and souvenirs. A typical wedding starts with some calm music, moves on to dancing and dinner, and ends with cake and the couple’s first dance.

This sounds normal and fun in most countries. However, there is a little tweak to that in Lebanon: gun shootings. As horrifying as it sounds, it can get worse. Oftentimes, in rural weddings, one of the invitees would take out a gun and shoot in the air. At a very dangerous angle, the shooter would aim the gun and shoot out of joy and happiness. The bullets would oftentimes break through some light bulbs or trees, but at some unfortunate moments, they might injure or kill someone. It has happened more than I can count. It has been happening often between 2013 and 2019 where 45 have been killed and 102 have been injured. The bullet would not hit someone present at the wedding, worse, it would hit someone spending the night on their balcony, listening to some tunes from the nearby wedding. Of course, no one gets punished and the shooter remains unknown, although seen at the wedding. The victim’s loved ones mourn their death, but the judiciary system makes the criminal seem anonymous.

The shooting tradition does not solely occur during joyous occasions. Ironically, these shootings happen during funerals and commemoration services. Even during times of distress and sorrow, one of the attendees would shoot outdoors. Sometimes, they have an excuse for that. If the deceased person is young, they would shoot to show extreme sadness. This has happened on the 21st of August of this year when people were holding the funerals of the Beirut explosion’s victims. Just like that, pictures and videos documented men who were uncontrollably shooting during the funeral in Ain El Remmaneh and people were shot in different areas; one of them is a famous football player Mohamed Atwi who died from his injuries.

A risky and dangerous tradition that has been present in Lebanon and the Arab region since the beginning of time. It shows feelings and emotions; angry, excited, melancholic, and happy. How did it come to existence? Who thought it was a good idea? Families have lost their family members, and many have been injured. A bullet that goes up, must come back down. With no laws being enforced to stop this criminal act from occurring, the shooting tradition will remain in the region, inducing fright, anxiety, and pain.

To Wadiaa who was shot by a “wedding” bullet in April of 2014,

To Sara who was shot by a “traffic” bullet in May of 2017,

To Hussein who was shot by an “elections” bullet in May of 2016,

To Wouroud who was shot by a “conflict” bullet in June of 2020,

To Mohammad who was shot by a “funeral” bullet in August of 2020, and others who were injured or murdered, justice will prevail with the end of this toxic tradition. 

Tamara Sleiman is a linguistics graduate student at American University of Beirut