Lebanon’s Last Surviving Train Driver Passes Away at Age 93

Assad Namrud, Lebanon’s last living train driver, passed away on November 18. We were fortunate to interview him in June and record his memories of an era of Lebanon’s history that couldn’t be further from the country’s present state. When we arrived at Namrud’s modest home in the town of Rayyak, once a hub on the rail line connecting Beirut and Damascus, we weren’t sure if the 93-year-old was fit to receive us. As he sat at his kitchen table nibbling on some food and sipping on a glass of 7 Up, Namrud looked frail, haggard, and confused. Still, we decided to go ahead with the interview as his first-hand account of his travels along the Beirut-Damascus railway as a driver was essential to the article that we were working on for AramcoWorld. As we were setting up the camera, Namrud shuffled into the living room where the book Lebanon on Rails featuring a cover photo of a much younger Assad, was prominently displayed. The same picture hung on the wall in a frame where he had [Read more...]