Girl killed by 'holiday' shot inspires call to end 'meaningless tradition'

Naya Khanna was killed while visiting a summer camp in Mount Lebanon

A seven-year-old girl who was wounded during a holiday shooting died in Lebanon, prompting calls to end the “meaningless tradition”.

Naya Khanna died in hospital after being hit in the head by a stray bullet when she was shot to celebrate the publication of her school exam results while she was at a summer camp on Mount Lebanon.

Her death sparked a wave of grief and anger, and her photos went viral on social media.

Education Minister Abbas Halabi called the celebratory shooting a “meaningless tradition” and urged citizens to “stop turning our joy to the funeral.

Adib Abdel Masih, an MP, announced that he would be introducing the “Naya Khanna Act” on Wednesday to increase penalties for celebratory shootings and make event hosts legally responsible for any shootings carried out by their guests.

Militants fire into the air during the funeral of two Fatah commanders in the Rashidiya Palestinian refugee camp Photo: Mahmoud Zayat/AFP via Getty Images

Holiday shooting has been banned in Lebanon since 1959, and the law was tightened in 2016. Abdel Masih told local reporters that his amendment would further tighten the law and “avenge” Naya's death.

Injuries caused by stray bullets are not uncommon in a country where nearly a third of citizens own firearms. According to the Lebanese non-governmental organization Movement for Permanent Peace, in 2017 alone, 90 people died as a result of celebratory shootings.

During the New Year celebrations in January, three people were injured in incidents across the country and two passenger planes were damaged by stray bullets.

The situation has improved recently, according to the Lebanese organization Stray Bullets Kill Joy. years, but about 100 people are still injured in the holiday shooting every year.

Marva Seif, one of the co-founders of the initiative, said that many people are still unaware of the risk this tradition poses.

< p>“People don’t realize that even if you shoot in the air when there is no one around you, the bullets can fall somewhere else and hit someone,” Safe said.

Safe founded the initiative in 2018, after the death of an 18-year-old girlfriend who was shot in the head by a stray bullet while standing on her balcony in the northern city of Tripoli. Since then, Safe has organized events across the country and joined the chorus of voices calling for an end to the holiday shooting.

“We don't know what else we can do,” she said.