2 cousins Amir, Sara lose limbs, have hopes shattered in Israeli bombing in Gaza

By Anadolu staff

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Two cousins, Sara Marzouq, 12, and Amir Marzouq, 11, are unable to have normal lives because they had their legs amputated as a result of an Israeli bombardment that targeted their home in Gaza City.

The children are undergoing treatment and medical monitoring at the Baptist Hospital in Gaza City after they were evacuated from the al-Shifa Hospital, which had been under Israeli siege for 14 days.

They are anxious and afraid because of the difficult circumstances they are going through -- suffering physical and psychological pain as a result of the injuries sustained from the bombardment during the onslaught against Gaza since Oct. 7.

-Deprived of his sporting dream

Amir's hopes of becoming a football player have faded, as those aspirations are now impossible after his amputation.

His wish was to join the ranks of the Palestinian national team, play for a major club and shine internationally in the sport.

-Amputation is ‘a difficult feeling’

Sara, lying beside him in the hospital bed, describes the amputation of her leg as “a difficult feeling” that she never imagined she would face. It never occurred to her that she would live in such difficult conditions.

As the children undergo treatment, they look forward to returning to normal lives and regaining their health and activities.

Sara was surprised by the shelling that targeted their house.

“We found ourselves trapped under the rubble after the violent bombing,” she said. “I tried to stand on my feet but I couldn't, so I had to crawl with my body searching for light until I reached the building's stairs.”

When she looked at her leg, it was missing. That caused her to scream and at that moment her father heard her and came to her rescue.

She believes her amputation was God's decree and she does not object to her fate.

Amir told Anadolu through tears: “We were asleep when the three-story house above us was bombed.”

“I found my leg disfigured, and I was immediately taken to the hospital where my leg was amputated,” he said. “I just wish to return to my normal life and regain my leg.”

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack in early October by the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, killed less than 1,200 people.

More than 33,000 Palestinians have since been killed and 75,577 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

Israel has also imposed a crippling blockade on the Gaza Strip, leaving its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which last week asked it to do more to prevent famine in Gaza.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala