Ali gets treatment in Kuwait (12 year-old lost arms, family in war)

News 24 (South Africa) ^ | April 17th, 2003

[Sabertooth]

Updated 16 April 2003, 07.15

Ali arrives in special burns hospital

Ali Ismail Abbas, the Iraqi boy who lost both his arms in a bomb attack, has been airlifted to a special burns unit.

12-year-old Ali left the Baghdad hospital where he was being treated and is now in neighbouring country Kuwait.

Doctors say that Ali has been getting sicker every day and they warned he might die unless he had urgent medical treatment.

He's now at Kuwait's Ibn Sina hospital, which has a special clinic for treating burns.

Seven other Iraqi children are being treated there too.

More kids need urgent help

Ali was the only member of his family to survive when a bomb hit his home, but has very bad burns to his body.

He had to moved because the hospital he was staying at in Baghdad didn't have the best equipment.

Many hospitals can't cope with the number of war victims, and some don't even have clean water.

Help from Kuwait came after Ali's nurse wrote to Tony Blair and George Bush asking for urgent help.

BBC LINK

[Sabertooth]

((((((growl)))))

[Diogenesis]

If memory serves, he lost his arms when an Iraqi SAM went
out of control.

[FreeAtlanta]

Whatever weapon did it to him, it was Saddam's fault. Had Saddam been just and sane leader, this little boy would still have his arms and his family. Imagine all the lives and little children that will now have hope because Saddam is gone.

I pray that God will help this boy and that he will continue to bless us.

[Sabertooth]

If memory serves, he lost his arms when an Iraqi SAM went out of control.

Are they ever "in control?"

Here are a couple of earlier threads...

You've broken your word, says Baghdad boy who lost his arms

Kuwait Hospital to Treat Armless Child of Iraq War

[MeekOneGOP]

bumpity bumpity bumpity !!

[Diogenesis]

Good point. Some of the blame goes to CNN, too, for
knowingly covering up this for so long.

CNN's MOTTO : "RATINGS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN LIVES AND HONOR"

[Moonmad27]

Sad as this is, the story of the boy is being used solely for anti-war (mainly anti-Bush) propaganda. There is currently a large picture of the boy, showing his saintly doe-eyed expression on AOL's welcome screen with the caption "He Symbolizes Iraq's Suffering", as if Iraq was paradise until GWB came along. There are so many other pictures that could be used to "symbolize Iraq's suffering" that show Saddam's evil against the Iraqi people.

[BrooklynGOP]

A 12-year-old Iraqi boy who lost both his arms and was orphaned in a US missile attack on his home

I thought we were going to disarm Saddam?

[SouthernFreebird]

ROTFL........your baaaaad

[BrooklynGOP]

Sorry, too much coffee :)

[Illbay]

It isn't clear. The official line is that it was an errant American munition. No one knows.

It doesn't matter. Who's helping him? We are. We will.

[FBD]

thanks for the ping. bttt

[Sabertooth]

You're on fire, or soon will be..

Yeah, I'm laughing, but waaaaay over here.

[ChemistCat]

What's this, he lost his WHOLE family? An uncle was speaking, right!? and I understand he has several surviving sisters. It's truly tragic, whether the missile was American or Iraqi (comes down to the same thing--Iraq hid legitimate targets of war in civilian areas)--but what is the point in making things even worse than they are? Tell us some died and some survived, don't say "He lost his whole family" when he didn't. Do you think we won't be sorry enough for him if he isn't absolutely alone in the world?

[Sabertooth]

I understand he has several surviving sisters.

I missed that... gotta source and link?

[stanz]

There was a film clip on MSNBC last night showing one of his older sisters there with him.

[Texaggie79]

Bada bum bum

[cgk]

German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, at Blair's side, said that Germany would also like to offer its help in treating such cases. "Whenever and wherever such children are in need of treatment and where we feel we can be of assistance, we would very much feel that it is our humane and special honour to go in and offer this assistance," he said

Strange statement. Special honor to treat him? Why?