My fellow VR photographer Fadi Saikali lives in Lebanon. I got to know him through one of the VR photography online communities and we instantly clicked (no pun intended). We worked together and other VR photographers based in the Middle East to encourage the idea of peace in our unfortunate region. We made a Middle East Peace Edition within the World Wide Panorama. Linking our work together, artists from Israel, UAE, Lebanon and Egypt. It is bizarre now for me to read what I had wrote.

I have contacted Andy Alpern, Yaniv Sirton and Fadi. I haven’t yet received a reply from Fadi. I hope Fadi, his wife, his daughter, family and friends are safe and well. I hope he is not one of the 200+ Lebanese who have lost their lives. I hope that Internet access in Lebanon is down. Or that there is no electricity or maybe they managed to leave Lebanon. One thing for sure is that Lebanon is now in ruins.

Fadi has a website called Virtual Lebanon. It has VR photos and panoramas of Beirut, Byblos, Saida, Fakra, Bekaa Valley and many more places.

Amr Moussa, Secretary General of the Arab league, has publicly said that the Middle East peace process is dead. I agree.

UPDATE - 20th July 2006: I just received an email from him. He is still in Lebanon and he and his family are safe. Thank God.