In 1964, karam was the designer for the BeirutCityMall, a multi-use complex with an egg-shaped shell housing a cinema, surrounded by towers and at the time the largest shopping mall in the middle east. the outbreak of the civil war in lebanon in 1975 left the structure damaged beyond repair. most of the buildings were razed but there have been some efforts to rehabilitate the egg (also nicknamed ‘sabouneh’ or soap or the dome by locals) which has survived, and which now occupies an iconic place in the hearts of lebanese nostalgic for the country’s prewar era. In june 2004, a front page article in TheWallStreetJournal discussed some designs to preserve and restore the egg.