North-Press Agency
25-year-old Bashar Ismail, a resident of the al-Intifada neighborhood in the city of Raqqa, had to wait four years until the establishment of prosthesis center in his city so that he could return to his normal life.
Ismail is a victim of torture at the hands of the Islamic State (ISIS), who cut off his left hand and right foot. The young man sees the fitting of his prostheses as a new beginning through which he has returned to his normal life.
"My limbs were cut off four years ago after I was accused of theft," the young man explains. "I could not obtain prostheses at my own expense until the center was opened."
However, in April last year, the Hope Makers Center for prosthetics in the city of Raqqa, northeastern Syria, gave hundreds of people who lost their limbs during the war years the possibility to return to their normal lives.
The center, which was established in February 2019, is the only one of its kind installing prostheses for amputees and providing physical therapy for those who lost their limbs during the battles that took place in Raqqa in 2017 after the city fell under ISIS control in 2014.
Limited capabilities
Mahmoud al-Hadi, director of the Hope Makers Center, told North-Press that due to the lack of support and weak material capacity, the center was partially closed. The services became limited to two surgeries per month according to available financial capabilities.
He added, "We have more than a thousand amputees registered in the center, but lack of financial means forced us to close the center without performing operations for the patients.”
There are more than four thousand war-related injuries in the city of Raqqa caused by ISIS mines in addition to injuries from battles to control the city, according to the center’s statistics.
Al-Hadi explained that they worked throughout the year, with the support of some volunteers, on the “fitting of 52 prosthetic parts for lower limbs, treatment of 700 patients in the physical therapy center, revision of 42 amputations, two installations for external plates, six shrapnel removals, and the installation of external orthoses for 40 children.”
Continuous need
After the Syrian Democratic Forces, with the support of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, took control of the city on October 17, 2017 and hostilities ceased, thousands of people returned to the city, putting the lives of many at risk amid the presence of thousands of leftover mines and other unexploded ordinance.
The closure of the center has created suffering for dozens of children who previously benefited from its services, as they tend to lose the possibility of renewing their prosthesis in later stages as they age.
13-year-old Omar al-Omar, a resident of al-Duryia neighborhood, told North Press that he is saddened by the closure of the center because of his continuous need to replace the prostheses as he grows.
He added, "My financial status prevents me from obtaining the prostheses because of their high cost." The cost of installing one limb in private hospitals is more than $700, or $1,400 for two limbs.
Al-Omar lost his legs in an ISIS landmine explosion shortly after his return to the city immediately after its liberation, and the center assisted him by installing two prostheses for free.
On International Mine Awareness Day, on April 4, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a remembrance of those who now live with the threat of unexploded ordinance, from Syria to Mali and the rest of the world.
Future suffering
The center's work was not limited to prosthetics and physical therapy; it also held training and rehabilitation courses for amputees in addition to providing psychological support to affected children.
The same applies to 12-year-old Khawla Al-Ali, a resident of Raqqa’s al-Ferdows neighborhood who was subjected to a pelvic amputation after being bombed by aircraft during the fighting.
Khawla was one of the beneficiaries of the center’s services after it opened more than a year ago, as the cost of installing an artificial limb reached about 800 dollars.
However, her suffering began to appear with the growth of her healthy limbs at the expense of the prosthetic limb, which has become short compared to the other limbs and requires continuous replacement.
Khawla says that her family cannot afford the costs of her treatment after the center stopped providing its services.