Maya Merai, a Syrian child who is a double amputee, returned to her country after treatment in Turkey, with two artificial legs, which enable her to walk to school.
Eight year old Maya, was sent to Turkey as part of an initiative headed up by Keres Kinik, President of the Turkish Red Crescent. She had been living in terrible conditions in camps for the displaced in northern Syria, and had been using plastic containers to move around. The Syrian child returned to her country after the artificial legs were attached by a specialist at the Red Crescent, Mohamed Zaki Culgu, in a treatment that lasted three months.
Maya and her father Mohamed Ali Merai who also suffers from physical disabilities, were overjoyed when they returned to the border crossing, in the Reyhanli district in Hatay province in southern Turkey.
Turkish Red Crescent coordinator in Syria, Kadir Ak Gunduz, told Anadolu that they had hurried to help Maya after they learned of her condition, adding that Maya had begun to walk on her artificial legs after three months of treatment. He said that the Turkish Red Crescent had given their full support to the Syrian child, who was now able to walk to school.
He said that Maya would remain under observation, because as she got older, her artificial legs would need to be changed, and that the Turkish Red Crescent would take care of that in the future.
Gunduz said that the Turkish Red Crescent had also given Maya’s father artificial limbs but that he couldn’t currently use them because he suffered from diabetes, but that his situation would be tracked as well.
Maya’s father said, “When we return, Maya will be able to walk to school. Our mother eagerly awaits us, and we will meet her.”
Maya and her family, which is composed of her father, whose legs were also amputated, and her mother and six siblings, were displaced from their home in the southern Aleppo countryside, because of Syrian regime bombardment. They fled to the al-Qunaitarat camp in the Idleb countryside.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
