SECAM 2007
The queen of hearts off with their heads
The queen of hearts off with their heads (Original article by By Iman Azzi
Daily Star staff Saturday, April 28, 2007, various press releases and internet
information on Miss Lebanon election)
Slayings unite public in outrage: ‘What’s worse than killing a child?’ - Na-
dine Njeim crowned Miss Lebanon 2007
Beirut: The bodies of two Lebanese youths who went missing earlier this
week were found late Thursday, dumped near a road south of Beirut in an
incident that shook the country and sparked fears of renewed sectarian vio-
lence. The bodies of Ziad Qabalan, 25, and Ziad Ghandour, 12, were found in
Jadra, between the capital and Sidon, by the police at around 7 p.m. Thurs-
day. The two Sunni youths had been missing since Monday.
Nadine Njeim was crowned in 2004, but last night the 2007 Miss Lebanon
winner bears the same name. Rest assured, Friday’s beauty pageant was
no rerun. Nadine Njeim won the Miss Lebanon 2007 title in a nationally
televised pageant at Casino du Liban Friday, the same day two slain youths
were buried amid mounting anger. Ziad Kabalan and Ziad Ghandour, who
were kidnapped and murdered in what was thought to be a political vendetta,
were buried in Beirut Friday. Nadine Njeim Age: 19 Profession: International
Finance Management Hobbies: Swimming & Diving Height: 1.81 m / 5’ 11”
Weight: 65 kg / 143 lb Star Sign: Aquarius.
The police found the bodies dumped near a Jadra gas station after having
received an anonymous phone call disclosing the location. Nadine Njeim
has been crowned Miss Lebanon 2007 after competing for the title alongside
18 contestants. Njeim was crowned Miss Lebanon by Gabrielle Bou Rashed,
Miss Lebanon 2006. Maha Khouri - 1st Runner Up Age: 22 Profession:
Graphic Design Hobbies: Sports Height: 1.75 m / 5’ 9” Weight: 57 kg / 126 lb
Star Sign: Taurus. Are you against cosmetic surgery?
The The event was organized by the Lebanese Broadcasting Company
‘LBC’. Tony Baroudy, husband of a former Miss Lebanon, hosted the event.
Nadine is 19 years old and studies International Business Administration. Her
hobbies include scuba diving and swimming. Along with the crown, she has
won exquisite prizes worth more than half a million US dollars to its winners,
and will be representing Lebanon in the Miss World beauty pageant.
Sahar Sbeiti - 2nd Runner Up Age: 19 Profession: Bank Management Hob-
bies: Travel Height: 1.70 m / 5’ 7” Weight: 52 kg / 115 lb Star Sign: Virgo.
This year, the contest was different then previous years and was done over
a period of three stages. The final stage witnessed the crowning of the new
pageant queen during a prestigious event, which hosted Lebanese singer
Nawal Al Zoughbi. Sacha Dahdouh - 3rd Runner Up Age: 20 Profession:
Marketing Hobbies: Acting & Tourism Height: 1.73 m / 5’ 8” Weight: 55 kg
/ 121 lb Star Sign: Leo.
The first runner up was Maha Al Khoury, second runner up Sahar Sibaiti,
third runner up Sasha Dahdouh and fourth runner up was Greta Habib.
Gretta Habib - 4th Runner Up Age: 23 Profession: Law Hobbies: Ballet,
Jazz Music, Classical Music & Swimming Height: 1.77 m / 5’ 10” Weight:
57 kg / 126 lb Star Sign: Taurus.
A panel of nine judges elected the winner. The judging committee included
Mai Al Khalil, Siham Noubni, Muna Fares, Nada Salama, Georgina Riziq,
Rougea Makrzel, Tareq Husami, Billy Karam and Paolo Bonja. Candrella
Eid Age: 19 Profession: Fashion Design Hobbies: Fashion & Sports Height:
1.75 m / 5’ 9 Weight: 54 kg / 119 lb Star Sign: Sagittarius.
Media reports quoted police sources as saying that the bodies were bloated,
suggesting they had been dead for at least 48 hours. No information was
immediately available on how the two had been killed. Laurice Matteh Age:
21 Profession: Graphic Design Hobbies: Dancing Height: 1.74 m / 5’ 9”
Weight: 59 kg / 130 lb Star Sign: Aquarius.
A security official quoted by The Associated Press said that Qabalan and
Ghandour had been shot to death and that the bodies bore signs of beating.
Late on Thursday, Prime Minister Fouad Siniora met with the heads of the
security forces and with Education Minister Khaled Qabbani. A statement
issued after the meeting ordered all schools and universities to close in
mourning on Friday. Jessy Hashem Age: 19 Profession: Student Hobbies:
Dancing, Tourism & Art Height: 1.68 m / 5’ 6” Weight: 53 kg / 117 lb Star
Sign: Pisces.
As The Daily Star went to press, there were reports of men gathering in Wata
al-Mosseitbeh, the Beirut neighborhood where Qabalan and Ghandour lived,
and in the adjacent district of Corniche al-Mazraa. Roads were closed in the
areas of the gatherings and in the southern suburb of Ouzai out of security
concerns. The youths’ disappearance triggered nationwide fears of another
round of sectarian violence in a country tense from five months of political
deadlock between government supporters and opposition forces.
Four people were killed in Beirut on January 25 in sectarian clashes. Sara
Kheirallah Age: 21 Profession: Psychology Hobbies: Reading Height: 1.77
m / 5’ 10” Weight: 62 kg / 137 lb Star Sign: Sagittarius. When does a woman
lose her feminine identity?
The fathers of Qabalan and Ghandour belong to the Progressive Socialist
Party of Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, who has repeatedly urged all parties to
remain calm and allow the authorities to investigate. “Let’s let the investiga-
tion take its course so that we don’t fall into [the trap] of political rumors,”
Jumblatt said on the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation’s “Kalam al-Nass”
political talk show after the news of the deaths emerged. Christelle Khouri
Age: 19 Profession: Public Administration Hobbies: Voluntary Work &
Sports Weight: 59 kg / 130 lb Star Sign: Taurus. Do you think it is permissi-
ble for a woman to use of her charm to get to higher places?
“Let’s distance politics from this issue,” he added, calling on his supporters
to remain calm and not to take matters into their own hands. “It is very im-
portant not to politicize the incident, and we have left it to the state and its se-
curity apparatus,” said Jumblatt. Earlier in the week, Jumblatt had contacted
parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri to garner his support in helping to keep
the situation under control. Joy Salameh Age: 19 Profession: Audio visual
studies Hobbies: Dancing, Tourism & Acting Height: 1.66 m / 5’ 5” Weight:
50 kg / 110 lb Star Sign: Cancer. How would you assert your feminine iden-
tity in today’s world?
Siniora had said in a statement earlier in the day that the kidnapping was a
“terrorist act” aimed at “sowing dissent between the Lebanese and dragging
them toward civil strife.” “It is a trap that the Lebanese will not fall into,” the
prime minister added. Manal Abou Haydar Age: 23 Profession: Hotel Man-
agement Hobbies: Tourism, Dancing & Travel Height: 1.67 m / 5’ 6” Weight:
54 kg / 119 lb Star Sign: Capricorn. If you were to be either the secretary of
state or the minister of homeland security or the minister of finance, which
one would you chose?
Security sources told The Daily Star that the top suspects in the case are rela-
tives of a 29-year-old Shiite Hizbullah supporter, Adnan Shamas, who was
killed in the January 25 sectarian clashes on the Beirut Arab University cam-
pus. The sources added that a man is currently in police custody and is being
interrogated over the incident, and one of Shamas’ brothers is being pursued
and is believed to be hiding some where in Bourj al-Barajneh, near Beirut.
Jessica Abou Dames Age: 19 Profession: Hospitality Management Hobbies:
Music, Dancing & Travel Height: 1.75 m / 5’ 9” Weight: 50 kg / 110 lb Star
Sign: Pisces. Would you rather be a smart woman or a beautiful one?
The Shiite Shamas clan, who mainly reside in the Ouzai area, released a
statement Wednesday in which they condemned the kidnapping and dis-
tanced themselves from the perpetrators. Earlier on Thursday, Ghandour’s
father, 52-year-old Mounir Ghandour, was taken to the hospital upon hearing
a rumor of his son’s death. Josette Qabalan Age: 18 Profession: Interior
Design Hobbies: Art & Dancing Height: 1.72 m / 5’ 8” Weight: 56 kg / 124
lb Star Sign: Virgo. Do you think the person dictates the spirit of the photo or
vice versa?
“A woman approached my husband as he was sitting outside the house, and
told him that his son and that of Qabalan have been found dead,” Samira
al-Saghir, the mother of missing Ziad Ghandour and wife of hospitalized
Mounir Ghandour, told The Daily Star. Upon hearing this, Mounir Ghandour
fainted and was taken by his neighbors to a hospital in the nearby Cola
district. Laudy Khouri Age: 18 Profession: Financial Management Hobbies:
Swimming, Fashion and Sports Height: 1.77 m / 5’ 10” Weight: 64 kg / 141
lb Star Sign: Gemini. If you were to run a marathon for a charitable organiza-
tion which one would it be?
“He has a weak heart, he had a surgery to install a pacemaker just two
months ago,” said Saghir. It was on the eve of his 12th birthday that Ziad
Ghandour went missing. Before the news was made public, Ziad’s mother
said she feared the worse and said: “If it was about theft and money, they
would have just taken their wallets and van.” Officials at the hospital would
not let members of the media enter the building, saying only that Mounir’s
“condition is stable,” without giving out any further information. “The police
are now looking for the woman,” said Saghir, adding: “She was not from
our neighborhood.” Maya Fakhri Age: 24 Profession: Law Hobbies: Sports
Height: 1.71 m / 5’ 7” Weight: 52 kg / 115 lb Star Sign: Gemini. What is the
importance of sport in your life?
Earlier in the day, 30 pupils of the Wata al-Mosseitbeh Government School,
which Ghandour attended, staged a half-hour sit-in outside the school in
order to call for the 12-year-old’s release. “Let us learn. Let us live. The
kidnapping of Ziad Ghandour is a crime against childhood,” read some of
the pamphlets carried by the students. Pauline Alexanian Age: 22 Profession:
Financial Management Hobbies: Basketball & Acting Height: 1.76 m / 5’ 9”
Weight: 51 kg / 113 lb Star Sign: Aquarius.
Lebanon’s most senior Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Sheikh Mohammad
Hussein Fadlallah, condemned the kidnapping, describing it as a “major
crime whose perpetrators should be prosecuted.” President Emile Lahoud
requested in a statement that all security measures be taken to prevent “any
repercussions of this deplorable incident.” Stefani Saab Age: 20 Profession:
Human Resources Hobbies: Dancing & Film Height: 1.71 m / 5’ 7 Weight:
53 kg / 117 lb Star Sign: Pisces
Lahoud added the situation in Lebanon “cannot bear such acts that harm sta-
bility and further ... increase tension and rekindle strife.” If you had 3 wishes,
what would you wish for? “I wish to be successful; I wish to have good con-
nections, and to take off my high heels now.” Same question was not asked to
the mother of Ziad Ghandour.
Daily Star staff Saturday, April 28, 2007, various press releases and internet
information on Miss Lebanon election)
Slayings unite public in outrage: ‘What’s worse than killing a child?’ - Na-
dine Njeim crowned Miss Lebanon 2007
Beirut: The bodies of two Lebanese youths who went missing earlier this
week were found late Thursday, dumped near a road south of Beirut in an
incident that shook the country and sparked fears of renewed sectarian vio-
lence. The bodies of Ziad Qabalan, 25, and Ziad Ghandour, 12, were found in
Jadra, between the capital and Sidon, by the police at around 7 p.m. Thurs-
day. The two Sunni youths had been missing since Monday.
Nadine Njeim was crowned in 2004, but last night the 2007 Miss Lebanon
winner bears the same name. Rest assured, Friday’s beauty pageant was
no rerun. Nadine Njeim won the Miss Lebanon 2007 title in a nationally
televised pageant at Casino du Liban Friday, the same day two slain youths
were buried amid mounting anger. Ziad Kabalan and Ziad Ghandour, who
were kidnapped and murdered in what was thought to be a political vendetta,
were buried in Beirut Friday. Nadine Njeim Age: 19 Profession: International
Finance Management Hobbies: Swimming & Diving Height: 1.81 m / 5’ 11”
Weight: 65 kg / 143 lb Star Sign: Aquarius.
The police found the bodies dumped near a Jadra gas station after having
received an anonymous phone call disclosing the location. Nadine Njeim
has been crowned Miss Lebanon 2007 after competing for the title alongside
18 contestants. Njeim was crowned Miss Lebanon by Gabrielle Bou Rashed,
Miss Lebanon 2006. Maha Khouri - 1st Runner Up Age: 22 Profession:
Graphic Design Hobbies: Sports Height: 1.75 m / 5’ 9” Weight: 57 kg / 126 lb
Star Sign: Taurus. Are you against cosmetic surgery?
The The event was organized by the Lebanese Broadcasting Company
‘LBC’. Tony Baroudy, husband of a former Miss Lebanon, hosted the event.
Nadine is 19 years old and studies International Business Administration. Her
hobbies include scuba diving and swimming. Along with the crown, she has
won exquisite prizes worth more than half a million US dollars to its winners,
and will be representing Lebanon in the Miss World beauty pageant.
Sahar Sbeiti - 2nd Runner Up Age: 19 Profession: Bank Management Hob-
bies: Travel Height: 1.70 m / 5’ 7” Weight: 52 kg / 115 lb Star Sign: Virgo.
This year, the contest was different then previous years and was done over
a period of three stages. The final stage witnessed the crowning of the new
pageant queen during a prestigious event, which hosted Lebanese singer
Nawal Al Zoughbi. Sacha Dahdouh - 3rd Runner Up Age: 20 Profession:
Marketing Hobbies: Acting & Tourism Height: 1.73 m / 5’ 8” Weight: 55 kg
/ 121 lb Star Sign: Leo.
The first runner up was Maha Al Khoury, second runner up Sahar Sibaiti,
third runner up Sasha Dahdouh and fourth runner up was Greta Habib.
Gretta Habib - 4th Runner Up Age: 23 Profession: Law Hobbies: Ballet,
Jazz Music, Classical Music & Swimming Height: 1.77 m / 5’ 10” Weight:
57 kg / 126 lb Star Sign: Taurus.
A panel of nine judges elected the winner. The judging committee included
Mai Al Khalil, Siham Noubni, Muna Fares, Nada Salama, Georgina Riziq,
Rougea Makrzel, Tareq Husami, Billy Karam and Paolo Bonja. Candrella
Eid Age: 19 Profession: Fashion Design Hobbies: Fashion & Sports Height:
1.75 m / 5’ 9 Weight: 54 kg / 119 lb Star Sign: Sagittarius.
Media reports quoted police sources as saying that the bodies were bloated,
suggesting they had been dead for at least 48 hours. No information was
immediately available on how the two had been killed. Laurice Matteh Age:
21 Profession: Graphic Design Hobbies: Dancing Height: 1.74 m / 5’ 9”
Weight: 59 kg / 130 lb Star Sign: Aquarius.
A security official quoted by The Associated Press said that Qabalan and
Ghandour had been shot to death and that the bodies bore signs of beating.
Late on Thursday, Prime Minister Fouad Siniora met with the heads of the
security forces and with Education Minister Khaled Qabbani. A statement
issued after the meeting ordered all schools and universities to close in
mourning on Friday. Jessy Hashem Age: 19 Profession: Student Hobbies:
Dancing, Tourism & Art Height: 1.68 m / 5’ 6” Weight: 53 kg / 117 lb Star
Sign: Pisces.
As The Daily Star went to press, there were reports of men gathering in Wata
al-Mosseitbeh, the Beirut neighborhood where Qabalan and Ghandour lived,
and in the adjacent district of Corniche al-Mazraa. Roads were closed in the
areas of the gatherings and in the southern suburb of Ouzai out of security
concerns. The youths’ disappearance triggered nationwide fears of another
round of sectarian violence in a country tense from five months of political
deadlock between government supporters and opposition forces.
Four people were killed in Beirut on January 25 in sectarian clashes. Sara
Kheirallah Age: 21 Profession: Psychology Hobbies: Reading Height: 1.77
m / 5’ 10” Weight: 62 kg / 137 lb Star Sign: Sagittarius. When does a woman
lose her feminine identity?
The fathers of Qabalan and Ghandour belong to the Progressive Socialist
Party of Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, who has repeatedly urged all parties to
remain calm and allow the authorities to investigate. “Let’s let the investiga-
tion take its course so that we don’t fall into [the trap] of political rumors,”
Jumblatt said on the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation’s “Kalam al-Nass”
political talk show after the news of the deaths emerged. Christelle Khouri
Age: 19 Profession: Public Administration Hobbies: Voluntary Work &
Sports Weight: 59 kg / 130 lb Star Sign: Taurus. Do you think it is permissi-
ble for a woman to use of her charm to get to higher places?
“Let’s distance politics from this issue,” he added, calling on his supporters
to remain calm and not to take matters into their own hands. “It is very im-
portant not to politicize the incident, and we have left it to the state and its se-
curity apparatus,” said Jumblatt. Earlier in the week, Jumblatt had contacted
parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri to garner his support in helping to keep
the situation under control. Joy Salameh Age: 19 Profession: Audio visual
studies Hobbies: Dancing, Tourism & Acting Height: 1.66 m / 5’ 5” Weight:
50 kg / 110 lb Star Sign: Cancer. How would you assert your feminine iden-
tity in today’s world?
Siniora had said in a statement earlier in the day that the kidnapping was a
“terrorist act” aimed at “sowing dissent between the Lebanese and dragging
them toward civil strife.” “It is a trap that the Lebanese will not fall into,” the
prime minister added. Manal Abou Haydar Age: 23 Profession: Hotel Man-
agement Hobbies: Tourism, Dancing & Travel Height: 1.67 m / 5’ 6” Weight:
54 kg / 119 lb Star Sign: Capricorn. If you were to be either the secretary of
state or the minister of homeland security or the minister of finance, which
one would you chose?
Security sources told The Daily Star that the top suspects in the case are rela-
tives of a 29-year-old Shiite Hizbullah supporter, Adnan Shamas, who was
killed in the January 25 sectarian clashes on the Beirut Arab University cam-
pus. The sources added that a man is currently in police custody and is being
interrogated over the incident, and one of Shamas’ brothers is being pursued
and is believed to be hiding some where in Bourj al-Barajneh, near Beirut.
Jessica Abou Dames Age: 19 Profession: Hospitality Management Hobbies:
Music, Dancing & Travel Height: 1.75 m / 5’ 9” Weight: 50 kg / 110 lb Star
Sign: Pisces. Would you rather be a smart woman or a beautiful one?
The Shiite Shamas clan, who mainly reside in the Ouzai area, released a
statement Wednesday in which they condemned the kidnapping and dis-
tanced themselves from the perpetrators. Earlier on Thursday, Ghandour’s
father, 52-year-old Mounir Ghandour, was taken to the hospital upon hearing
a rumor of his son’s death. Josette Qabalan Age: 18 Profession: Interior
Design Hobbies: Art & Dancing Height: 1.72 m / 5’ 8” Weight: 56 kg / 124
lb Star Sign: Virgo. Do you think the person dictates the spirit of the photo or
vice versa?
“A woman approached my husband as he was sitting outside the house, and
told him that his son and that of Qabalan have been found dead,” Samira
al-Saghir, the mother of missing Ziad Ghandour and wife of hospitalized
Mounir Ghandour, told The Daily Star. Upon hearing this, Mounir Ghandour
fainted and was taken by his neighbors to a hospital in the nearby Cola
district. Laudy Khouri Age: 18 Profession: Financial Management Hobbies:
Swimming, Fashion and Sports Height: 1.77 m / 5’ 10” Weight: 64 kg / 141
lb Star Sign: Gemini. If you were to run a marathon for a charitable organiza-
tion which one would it be?
“He has a weak heart, he had a surgery to install a pacemaker just two
months ago,” said Saghir. It was on the eve of his 12th birthday that Ziad
Ghandour went missing. Before the news was made public, Ziad’s mother
said she feared the worse and said: “If it was about theft and money, they
would have just taken their wallets and van.” Officials at the hospital would
not let members of the media enter the building, saying only that Mounir’s
“condition is stable,” without giving out any further information. “The police
are now looking for the woman,” said Saghir, adding: “She was not from
our neighborhood.” Maya Fakhri Age: 24 Profession: Law Hobbies: Sports
Height: 1.71 m / 5’ 7” Weight: 52 kg / 115 lb Star Sign: Gemini. What is the
importance of sport in your life?
Earlier in the day, 30 pupils of the Wata al-Mosseitbeh Government School,
which Ghandour attended, staged a half-hour sit-in outside the school in
order to call for the 12-year-old’s release. “Let us learn. Let us live. The
kidnapping of Ziad Ghandour is a crime against childhood,” read some of
the pamphlets carried by the students. Pauline Alexanian Age: 22 Profession:
Financial Management Hobbies: Basketball & Acting Height: 1.76 m / 5’ 9”
Weight: 51 kg / 113 lb Star Sign: Aquarius.
Lebanon’s most senior Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Sheikh Mohammad
Hussein Fadlallah, condemned the kidnapping, describing it as a “major
crime whose perpetrators should be prosecuted.” President Emile Lahoud
requested in a statement that all security measures be taken to prevent “any
repercussions of this deplorable incident.” Stefani Saab Age: 20 Profession:
Human Resources Hobbies: Dancing & Film Height: 1.71 m / 5’ 7 Weight:
53 kg / 117 lb Star Sign: Pisces
Lahoud added the situation in Lebanon “cannot bear such acts that harm sta-
bility and further ... increase tension and rekindle strife.” If you had 3 wishes,
what would you wish for? “I wish to be successful; I wish to have good con-
nections, and to take off my high heels now.” Same question was not asked to
the mother of Ziad Ghandour.
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