Two Iraqi children to undergo emergency heart surgery in Israel

Oct 11, 2007, 14:33 GMT

Tel Aviv - Two Iraqi children, a five-month-old girl and an 11-year-old boy, are set to arrive in Israel Thursday to undergo emergency open heart surgery.

An Israeli charity obtained clearance from the Israeli government and security services to transport both the patients and their families to Israel via Jordan, said Simon Fisher, the executive director of the group, Save a Child's Heart (SACH).

'It took us 24 hours to get clearance, which as far as we are concerned is speedy and quick,' he told Deustche Presse-Agentur dpa. 'You can image what it's like to get Iraqi passport holders into Israel. That's not exactly standard procedure.'

The baby girl and schoolboy suffer from a 'severe' congenital heart condition, which if not treated would leave them at risk of dying any moment, the organization said.

They will cross into Israel via the northern border crossing of Beit Shean with Jordan to be operated on at the Wolfson hospital, in central Israel south of Tel Aviv.

The two are part of a group of 40 Iraqi children examined by Israeli doctors in Jordan, who found them eligible for immediate emergency treatment.

Fisher said the surgeons at Wolfson are operating for a greatly reduced fee, while the rest of the cost - 10,000 US dollars per patient for transportation, treatment, recovery and accomodation - is being covered by his charity.

If surgery proves successful, the two are expected to stay in Israel with their families for another four to eight weeks for recovery at a nearby children's home run by the organization, before being sent back to Iraq via Jordan.

Fisher said that since the fall of Sadddam Hussein's regime, his organization has managed to bring 35 Iraqi children to Israel for treatment at Wolfson.