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GAZA TO BEIRUT

First injured child from Gaza arrives in Beirut for treatment

Thick black smoke rises after Israeli strikes in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, May 28, 2024. (Credit: Hatem Khaled/Reuters)

BEIRUT — A young boy, injured in Gaza, was received Monday morning at the American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUB) — the first child to arrive in Lebanon for treatment following the outbreak of Israel's war on the enclave.

A statement released Tuesday by the Ghassan Abu-Sittah Fund and the Palestine Children's Relief Society, says the five-year-old child sustained injuries to one of his upper limbs due to the ongoing Israeli aggression against Palestinians in Gaza, and that his arrival at AUB medical center "marks the beginning of a mission to treat war-wounded children in Lebanon."

The organizations intend to make sure each child receives the necessary treatment and support "before returning home safely to continue his or her recovery."

The fund was established by the British-Palestinian plastic and reconstructive surgeon Ghassan Abu-Sittah, who specializes in trauma-related injuries and spent 43 days treating the wounded in Gaza, notably at al-Shifa Hospital.  Sittah is also the Dean of Glasgow University. In 2015, Sittah co-founded and became director of the Conflict Medicine Program at Global Health Institute at the American University of Beirut.

Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah pictured (center) during a press conference held by doctors at al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza, in the aftermath of a deadly strike on the facility's courtyard on Oct. 17, 2023. (Credit: Photo taken from the Ghassan Abu-Sittah Children's Fund website)

The fund's first post on its Instagram account dates to Dec. 30, 2024, announcing the fund's mission and calling for donations. Its primary goal is to bring children from Gaza to Lebanon for treatment.

Around 1,000 Palestinians from Gaza are currently receiving medical treatment in Turkey, according to the country's president.

BEIRUT — A young boy, injured in Gaza, was received Monday morning at the American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUB) — the first child to arrive in Lebanon for treatment following the outbreak of Israel's war on the enclave. A statement released Tuesday by the Ghassan Abu-Sittah Fund and the Palestine Children's Relief Society, says the five-year-old child sustained injuries to one of...