[Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News] Paralyzed girl has been used as a political pawn for weeks

I wrote yesterday yesterday that Sky News reported the tragic story about Maha Sheik Khalil, the 7-year old girl from Gaza.

Sky News wrote that

The family has been told there are three hospitals willing to treat Maha - in Germany, Turkey, and the US - and a sponsor has agreed to cover the cost.

But they need to get her our of Gaza first, and they are still waiting for permission from Israel.

I noted that according to the IDF, no such request had been made, which means that it wasn't Israel keeping Maha from live-saving treatment - but Gaza officials.

It turns out that Maha has been a literal poster child for supposed Israeli atrocities for weeks, with many stories about her.

AP had a photo of her in the hospital on July 28:

Palestinian Maha al-Sheikh Khalil, 7, left, receives a present by a charity worker dressed as a bear for the Eid al-Fitr holiday on a hospital bed in Gaza City, in the northern Gaza Strip, Monday, July 28, 2014. ... According to the family, the doctors informed them that there is nothing that they can do and they have to seek treatment and spinal cord surgery abroad. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)

AFP published a photo of her as early as July 23.

So was there any formal request to transfer Maha to Israel so she could be treated abroad?

Not until after the Sky News story was aired!

Channel 3 New Zealand reported on her Monday at the same time as the Sky News article, indicating that officials at Shifa Hospital have been pushing her story to every reporter that walks in:

And while Maha has received offers of treatment from Germany, Turkey and the United States, she is stuck in the warzone.

Her transportation will take longer to organise than the current three-day ceasefire allows - and also requires Israeli cooperation.

Her doctor told Sky News every day she waits Maha's chances of nerve recovery fade.

That reporter did a follow-up today:

3 News met Maha days after the strike. Nearly three weeks later she is still in hospital, unable to receive the advanced treatment she needs.

But her family has just been told there might be some good news. They've got Maha's passport and there's a possible flight from Tel Aviv to Turkey – but they have to get her into Israel first.

A mobile phone sits at Maha's bedside and her uncle prays quietly – the family has been told the call could come at any minute.

Maha is listening to everything that's being said around her.

"They told me that I'm going to travel but until now they didn't let me go," she says.

"I want to go outside so fast so I can get well."

Maha's family is waiting for travel permission from Israel, but Israel says it hasn't received the request.

A check with the hospital confirms Maha's name is on a list that was sent a day earlier. But because of the political situation in Gaza the hospital has had to send it to the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah first, and on from there into Israel.

The urgent request had not been made until yesterday!

Maha's crime is that she is a cute 7-year old girl who can be used for anti-Israel propaganda - and as such she is far more valuable being shoved in front of reporters than abroad.

Now that there were indications of malfeasance by the administration of the hospital in getting her specialized treatment, her value has changed. Now it makes more propaganda sense for her to be treated abroad where more stories can be written about her. A British hospital, for example, is seemingly vying to treat Maha, but there is something a little off about that:

Dr Abdul Razzaq, chairman of North West directors of public health, has been working to have the little girl brought to Alder Hey.

He said: “I’ve been trying to see what’s possible. She’s very poorly.

“This is not political, this is a humanitarian issue with helping young innocent children to get better.”

If Maha, injured by shrapnel, can be operated on at Alder Hey, she will need to stay in Britain whilst she recovers.

Does it sound like Dr. Razzaq is working to treat her or is he working to use her to generate more news stories about Israeli atrocities? Especially since there are already hospitals in three countries willing to take her, why is he pretending that his hospital is in the running? When he says this isn't political - it sure sounds political. 

Remember that Shifa Hospital is Hamas' de facto headquarters. The administration at the hospital knowingly protects and cooperates with a terror group. Terrorists set up shop next to the emergency room.

Doctors are sacrificing Maha's well-being in orer to demonize Israel.

Finally, one must wonder if there aren't any Israeli hospitals that could treat Maha. The country has a fair share of medical expertise and an unfortunately high percentage of the population who have been paralyzed in war. Why is no one trying to get her treated in Israel, and instead concentrating on moving her to where even more stories can be written about her?

This entire episode is an exercise in anti-Israel PR, and Maha is the star of the production - very possibly at her own expense.

(h/t Bob Knot)



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Posted By Elder of Ziyon to Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News at 8/12/2014 05:47:00 AM