Little 3 year old Iraqi boy

[Sauron]

This is heartbreaking. I don't know which group, faction, or country did this. I started to search the article to find out, but gave up when I realized that it doesn't really matter to the little blind boy.


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...raqboy04m.html

From Iraq to Seattle: a little boy's journey of hope

After months in hospitals in his native Iraq and later Iran, Muhammed has come to dread visits to the doctor, even those half a world away in Seattle. The touch of rubber gloves, cold metal on his skin or the pressure of fingers on his face triggers an indelible fear and a reminder of the day 13 months ago when he was shot from close range with an AK-47 assault rifle.

Back home in Iraq, his family prays daily for him and hopes his vision will be restored in one eye and the misshapen flesh transformed into the nose, forehead and cheeks of a little boy. But doctors here are hesitant to promise much. The months that have passed since the shooting and some of the early medical procedures have made the boy's condition only worse.

"My guess is he's not seeing very much," says Seattle eye surgeon Thomas Gillette as he shines a bright light into Muhammed's filmy eye.
[...]
When Muhammed and his grandmother arrived at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on May 17, the first sounds of his new world — English, a language unfamiliar to him — soared over his head. After his grandmother returned to Iraq, he slipped into the arms of Smith, easily adapting to the woman who would be his foster mother during the coming months.

When Muhammed cries, it's the words from Smith, whom he calls "Auntie," that soothe him. The jingle of her earrings, the scent of her perfume, the brush of her unveiled hair against his face and feel of her denim jacket are constant reminders he is in a new and different world.

At the Snohomish home where Smith lives with her husband, Randy Smith, and daughters Erika, 20, and Alexa, 18, Muhammed stops to listen for a new sound, walks with hands outstretched to feel his way around. He navigates through a forest of gilt end-tables and the trunks of wood furniture, slips on sleek oak floors and listens with trepidation to the barking of the poodles, Tiffany and Roger. Pet dogs are unheard of in Iraq.

At first, he rejected the strange food like pizza and salad, but once he found favorites, he hoarded them — stuffing his mouth and pockets full of pistachio nuts and trying to hide a bag of Cheerios.

It took only a few days before Muhammed slowly relaxed into his new surroundings, becoming fond of Chicken McNuggets, Mexican food and discovering Raisinets. He is learning English words: "good boy," "thank you" and "go home," which he says with a child's earnestness as he pulls Smith's hand whenever an outing becomes tedious.
[...]
In an Izod jacket, striped rugby shirt and brown leather sandals, he's as stylish as Smith, who pushes him in a stroller through shopping malls. She talks proudly of how he can sing his ABCs, count from one to 10 and say "I love you."

"Love you, love you, love you," the family tells him.

"Love you," he repeats.

Muhammed was brought to Seattle by Healing the Children, which connects children who need medical care unavailable in their native countries with U.S. physicians, hospitals and foster parents who volunteer their services.

The Smiths heard about Healing the Children a year ago and offered to host a child needing temporary foster care. When the organization contacted them about Muhammed, Randy Smith, 46, a Boeing systems analyst, says he was hesitant, but "we prayed about it" and now he calls Muhammed's presence a blessing.

For Julie Smith, 47, an interior decorator, "He's made me see what's beautiful differently. I don't really notice the scars on his face anymore. His personality shines through."

No one knows just how long Muhammed will be here or how many surgeries he will require. Little was known about his condition before Muhammed arrived in Seattle, and doctors are finding more damage than they initially thought.

While Muhammed's neurological functions remain normal, his face and sinuses are so damaged he has sleep apnea, which means he stops breathing momentarily in his sleep. His right eye was shattered, and doctors in Iraq removed it. The left eye has been traumatized and will, at a minimum, need a cornea transplant, but even then doctors say he is unlikely to have much vision.