Ziad Rahbani, the Lebanese composer and musician who created a distinct Lebanese sound from Western and Arabic musical roots, and whose sardonic critique of the country's sectarian politics rang true to Lebanese across the divides, has died. He was 69.

Rahbani was much loved across Lebanon and his words remained relevant across generations, from those who grew up with him during the 1975-90 Civil War to the post-war generation who have struggled to shake the war's legacy.

He passed away at a hospital in Beirut yesterday morning after a long illness.