On September 17, 2024, two years before the publication of this article, explosives hidden in pagers used by members of the Shia Hezbollah movement exploded simultaneously throughout Lebanon, causing what doctors described as a "devastating" attack and "different from anything ever seen before."
Karim, an 11-year-old boy, was holding hands with his father when the explosion hit him in the face. By his height, Karim's head was level with his father's pants pocket, where the pager was. The boy was left bleeding and was hurriedly carried by Red Cross volunteers to the LAU Medical Center–Rizk Hospital, amid a Beirut in chaos with screams of pain and panic.
Karim was admitted to the hospital with severe facial and brain injuries minutes before 4 PM (10 AM in Brasília). In the emergency room, his heart stopped. The medical team, led by Mariana Helou, tried to resuscitate him, but the boy did not survive.
