08 October 2004	Friday	22 Shaban 1425

PESHAWAR, Oct 7: The father of a 10-year-old boy who lost his both legs in an aerial bombing in Wana nearly six months ago has appealed to the governor of the NWFP for financial help.

The boy, Sahibzada, was severely injured in the bombing on Azam Warsak village in South Waziristan Agency, and his both legs were amputated at the Aman Hospital in Peshawar a week ago.

Two of the boy's paternal uncles were killed in the bombing in the same area. The child was described by his father, Mohammad Iqbal, as extremely smart and handsome before the tragedy. "Now, he is terribly anaemic and doctors are advising to keep him on a special nutrition so that he could recover quickly," he said.

His father, who rushed from Karachi where he worked as a guard, said that he had so far spent Rs700,000 on his treatment, adding that he had borrowed a large part of the amount from friends and relatives.

"I was studying at a Madressah in Wana, but when the bombs fell I was playing with my friends. Please tell me why are they hurling bombs at children," screamed Sahibzada.

His mother said that she had spent many a sleepless night nursing him for the past several months, adding that it had affected her health. "Sahibzada weeps away the nights because of the severe pain in his legs.

I apply bandages on his amputated legs every day, which is very painful for me and him both", she said sitting besides his dirty bed. She had no other words while consoling her son other than "What can we do? It is God's Will."

Sahibzada's father, Iqbal, who appeared to be upset, said that he also had to look after the wives and three children of his two brothers, Noor Jamal and Amir Khan, who had died in a bombing a month before his son got hit.

Sahibzada, speaking in a feeble voice, said that he was luckier than 10 other children who had died in the same bombing incident. His father said that he had already sold off his cattle, home and other household items, including utensils, adding that he was planning to visit his village to seek more loans.

Iqbal, father of six sons and two daughters, said that his son was initially admitted to the Tank hospital. He was later shifted to the Hayatabad Medical Complex and subsequently to Room No217 in the Aman Hospital, where he said that while the doctor treating his son was cooperative but still he needed Rs3,000 every day to continue his treatment.

"My son has not only lost his legs but also his perpetual smile. The boy, who used to play for hours with his brothers, is unhappy even when they give him company. He is getting weaker with every passing day," his mother said.

"Will my son be able to play again?" she asked this correspondent. "Doctors say he will be healthy again, tell me, are they telling the truth?" she asked. A grateful Iqbal said that the International Committee of the Red Cross had been helping in his son's treatment. "I am grateful to them," he said.

"But I am worried about my son's future. My handicapped son would suffer too much in future, which I cannot tolerate. He is my son!" he said. Mohammad Iqbal appealed to the NWFP Governor Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah to help him financially so that he could continue his son's treatment besides enabling him to pay up the money he took as loan.