“My daughter has a brain hemorrhage, her skull is cracked”: a Lebanese footballer victim of Israeli strikes

Céline Haidar was on her way to realizing her dream of representing Lebanon on the national team when she was injured in an Israeli strike on the southern suburbs of Beirut. Today, the 19-year-old footballer is still in intensive care, in a coma.

When Israeli bombings increased in intensity on the southern suburbs of Beirut, a stronghold of Hezbollah, a few weeks ago, Céline's family took refuge in Baakline, a picturesque town nestled in the mountains. “But Céline was forced to go to Beirut for her studies and training”says his father Abbas Haidar, from Saint-George hospital in the Lebanese capital.

“When there were calls to evacuate and bombings, she left the house, then returned in the evening to sleep”he adds. On Saturday, the day of the accident, he called her to warn her of a new evacuation order from the Israeli army, which usually precedes strikes, and she left the house.

Head impact

“Then my wife called me to tell me that Céline was in the hospital”he blurted. She was seriously injured by an impact to the head during an attack on her neighborhood of Chiyah. That day, the Israeli army relentlessly shelled the southern suburbs, from morning to evening, targeting at least 10 sites, notably in Chiyah.

The young woman was preparing to captain her BFA women's first division team – Beirut Football Academy – which won the championship last season. She was to join the national team for its next competitions – – including a meeting with Iran in October canceled because of the war.

The strike was close […] she was hit in the head

She had already won the West Asian Women's Football Cup in 2022 with the national under-18 team. On social networks, a video moved Internet users. We see the young woman on the ground, her face bleeding, while a young man kneeling next to her screams in pain.

“The strike was close […] She was hit in the head.”confides his mother Sanaa Shahroura. “My daughter has a brain hemorrhage, her skull is cracked.” She tells how Céline asked her on Saturday to prepare a dish that she liked. “An hour later, her friend calls me to tell me she was injured”she adds, sobbing.

We pay the price for something that is not our fault

“My daughter is a hero, she will get back up”she insists. “She dreamed of playing abroad, she said she wanted to be like Ronaldo and Messi […] She wanted to be a star and have everyone talk about her,” the mother continues. “They killed his dream […] Now everyone is talking about her because she's injured, in a war she had nothing to do with.”

Many athletes killed

“The doctors are following her very closely”confides his father, from the hospital. “But the damage is very significant, we hope that it will gradually disappear”. “We pay the price for something that is not our fault”he regrets, crying. Israel launched a massive bombing campaign and ground offensive in Lebanon against pro-Iranian Hezbollah at the end of September.

Since the start, in October 2023, of cross-border exchanges of fire in southern Lebanon on the border with Israel, more than 3,540 people have been killed, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, the vast majority since the escalation in september. And among the victims according to the media, many athletes were killed.

The Lebanese Football Federation suspended its matches, with the exception of a single match which took place. BFA team leader Ziad Saadé explains that the player is in an artificial coma. “Everyone must pray for her, so that she comes back among us”. “On the pitch, she’s a fighter. The link between defense and attack”explains her coach Samer Barbari, who came to the hospital with his players to support Céline. “She is an exceptional girl and an excellent player”adds Mr. Barbari.