Kareem Badawi, a young man from Baton Rouge, was killed in the New Orleans attack on New Year's Eve. His father, Belal Badawi, expresses his grief and shock over the senseless violence that took his son's life.
Kareem Badawi“It’s evil,” said his father Belal Badawi. “Nobody can justify killing innocent people. What’s in your mind just to kill people? They were just celebrating the new year. I can’t believe how evil people are.”He grew up in Baton Rouge and was in New Orleans to reunite with friends from high school. They planned to celebrate the holiday together at the Sugar Bowl. Belal Badawi told AL.com that his son and friend Parker Vidrine decided about 2:45 a.m.
to go back out into the French quarter as there were still a lot of revelers out on the streets. Roughly 30 minutes later, police say, former Army soldier Shamsud-Din Jabbar, who posted videos on his Facebook hours before the attack previewing the violence he would unleash and proclaiming his support for the Islamic State militant group, carried out the attack. Fourteen people were killed and dozens injured, including Kareem’s friend Vidrine who was hospitalized with critical injuries.“I said, ‘Oh my God,’ there’s something going on in New Orleans,’ so I went to searching,” he told AL.com. “Then it came over the TV.”“I kept calling him and he didn’t answer,” he said. “I called his brother, who was down there too, but they weren’t together.” Belal Badawi’s other son returned his call about 7 a.m. and said he, too, had been trying to call Kareem. Belal Badawi said they began to worry even more when they found out that Kareem’s phone was located in the area where the attack happened. About 9 a.m., Vidrine’s mother called the Badawi family and told them her son was in critical condition.The family went to the hospital to await news of Kareem.Kareem’s high school held a large prayer service Thursday night, and Kareem’s funeral was held Friday.Kareem grew up playing sports, basketball, baseball and football. The teen planned on becoming a mechanical engineer, so he kept that in mind when he began to look at colleges.“He found out Alabama was good, so he asked me,” his father recalle
NEW ORLEANS ATTACK KARREEM BADAWI BELAL BADAWI FATHER MOURNS TRAGEDY
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
An aspiring nurse, football star and father of 2 among the dead in New Orleans attackNEW ORLEANS (AP) — An 18-year-old girl dreaming of becoming a nurse, a father of two and a former Princeton football star suffered fatal injuries when the driver of a white pickup truck sped down Bourbon Street, packed with holiday revelers early Wednesday morning.
Read more »
An aspiring nurse, football star and father of 2 among the dead in New Orleans attackAn 18-year-old girl dreaming of becoming a nurse, a father of two and a football star suffered fatal injuries when the driver of a white pickup truck sped onto Bourbon Street, packed with holiday revelers.
Read more »
An aspiring nurse, football star and father of 2 among the dead in New Orleans attackOfficials have not yet released the names of the 15 people killed in the New Orleans New Year’s Day truck attack, but their families and friends have started sharing their stories.
Read more »
Future nurse, football star, single mother, father of 2 killed in New Orleans attackOfficials have not yet released the names of the 15 people killed in the New Orleans New Year's Day truck attack, but their families and friends have started…
Read more »
An aspiring nurse, football star, single mother and father of 2 killed in New Orleans attackNEW ORLEANS (AP) — An 18-year-old girl dreaming of becoming a nurse, a single mother, a father of two and a former Princeton football star suffered fatal injuries when the driver of a white p…
Read more »
Princeton Grad, Father of Two Among Victims in New Orleans Truck AttackThree victims killed in the New Orleans truck attack on Bourbon Street have been identified by family. Martin 'Tiger' Bech, a Princeton University graduate, a father of two, and a recent high school graduate are among those killed. At least 15 people were killed and more than 30 injured when a 42-year-old U.S. citizen from Texas plowed a pickup into crowds celebrating the new year. The suspect opened fire on responding officers and was killed. An Islamic State group flag was found in the truck, and the FBI is investigating the attack as terrorism.
Read more »