Lebanese Boy Orphaned by Dahieh Blasts Fulfills Dream of Meeting Ronaldo
Lebanese toddler Haidar Mustafa, 3, has fulfilled his dream of meeting Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, 36 days after losing his parents in the Bourj al-Barajneh bombings.
Haidar arrived Friday in the Spanish capital Madrid and was welcomed by Cristiano at the airport.
He was then accompanied by the Portuguese footballer to the club's headquarters, where Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez hugged him and gave him a Real Madrid shirt with Haidar printed on its back.
Haidar then attended the club's Christmas lunch. He is also expected to watch Real's training session on Saturday and the team's match against Rayo Vallecano on Sunday.
Some of the pictures posted on social networking websites showed the boy crying during his meeting with Cristiano.
"Haidar, a three-year-old child who in November lost both of his parents in bombings in Beirut, saw his dream come true on Friday when he was given the opportunity to meet his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo," Real Madrid said in a statement posted on its website.
"Following the brutal attack in the Lebanese capital last month, the story of Haidar, photographed in a Real Madrid shirt after surviving the massacre, came to global attention," the statement said.
"And since then, the club had been ceaseless in its efforts to get in contact with him and arrange for his dream of meeting Cristiano," it added.
The boy had expressed to reporters his desire to meet with Real Madrid's superstar when he was receiving treatment in hospital in the wake of the blasts.
A social media campaign was then launched to help Haidar meet Cristiano under the hashtag #CristianoMeetHaidar.
The suicide bombings, among the worst in years, left 44 people dead and 240 others wounded.
The attacks were claimed by the jihadist Islamic State group.
Y.R.
Source: Agence France Presse, Naharnet
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