Syrian children suffer, adapt to war
Children at a Syrian field hospital near the Turkish border accept the war as the new normal.
REYHANLI, Turkey — Three weeks ago, 15-year-old Mohammed was a normal, healthy boy. Although he lived in a war-torn country, he played with his friends and bought groceries for his mother whenever she asked. One day, he went to the bakery to get some bread for dinner later that night. Suddenly, he heard a big blast, fell to the ground and lost consciousness.
“When I tried to get up a few minutes later, I couldn’t. My leg was crushed," he told Al-Monitor.
Mohammed was treated in a field hospital near al-Bab, a town in Aleppo governorate inside Syria. The doctor soon found his leg was severely damaged and transferred him to a hospital in Kilis, near the Turkish-Syrian border, where he received treatment for his injuries. The Turkish doctor tried to save his leg, but couldn’t, and amputated it.
Asked if he feels sad about losing his leg, he told Al-Monitor that he hopes to get an artificial one soon. He doesn’t show any emotion while talking about the attack or losing an important body part. Despite the war in his hometown and the constant strikes with barrel bombs, Mohammed wants to go back to his mother in al-Bab as soon as possible.
