Syrian children operated on in Prague return to Jordan
20.01.2014 / 17:30 | Aktualizováno: 30.05.2017 / 15:02
(This article expired 31.12.2018.)
An Army Charter Aircraft landed in Amman with two Syrian children patients that underwent a complicated heart surgery in Prague. Both siblings stayed more then one month in the Czech capital Prague accompanied by their mother and older brother. The army aircraft also carried several tons of winter clothes for Syrian children and their parents in Jordanian refugee camps.
Both patients - 6 and 17 years old siblings, fled to Jordan from their country due to the civil war. In Jordan, they live with their parents near the town of Zarqa. Both had suffered of severe congenital heart defects, which were never adequately treated. The mentioned heart surgeries give both patients great chance to live a normal life. In the framework of the same project called MEDEVAC, a mobile team of pediatric cardiologist was deployed in Jordan in mid-December 2013. During their stay, they conducted six successful surgeries on Syrian children with heart diseases.
The Czech Ambassador welcoming the Syrian kids at Marka airport
The collection of clothes, that was brought to Jordan by the same aircraft, was organized by the Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic in cooperation with the humanitarian organization “ Centipede - On Own Feet“ at the end of last year. Despite a very short time to organize the whole event around a hundred of schools and other subjects offered their help and participation in the project. The collection is organized by Czech children who have collected nearly 20 tons of clothes for Syrian refugee children affected by war in their country.
The Czech delegation led by the First Deputy Minister of the Interior Lubomir Metnar forwarded collected clothes to the representatives of Jordanian non-governmental organizations In the Mafraq community center. They also visited a refugee camp in Zaatari, where the idea to organize the collection of winter clothes for refugees had begun.
"When we were in Zaatari in early December last year as part of MEDEVAC program, we found out that one of the main problems in the camp is a desperate shortage of winter clothes " said Lubomir Metnar and added: "Those who suffer most in war conflicts like the one in Syria are children. It is symbolic that their Czech peers have decided to help them. "
The Czech Republic is fully aware that the long conflict in Syria leads to an immense suffering to people who are forced to leave their homes and on the other hand it also causes big problems to states that border Syria because of the refugee waves. The Czech Republic tries to help by providing direct financial support or by participation in humanitarian programs aimed at improving the situation of people whose lives were disrupted by war.