Sports groups urged to save Palestine karate champion's life

Palestinian karate champion, Nagham Abu Samra, is in urgent need of life saving surgery after she was seriously injured in an Israeli air strike on her home in the Nuseirat refugee camp on 17 December, her father has said, urging international bodies to help her receive the medical treatment she urgently needs abroad.

“Nagham suffered head injuries, amputation of her right foot, fractures in her left arm, and a dislocation of her shoulder. This is the overall health condition,” Marwan Abu Samra said, adding that she is in the intensive care unit of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the city of Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.

Nagham has been in a coma since she was injured and her health has been deteriorating, according to her father.

Nagham Abu Samra, 24,once hailed as "the most beautiful karate player in the world" by her proud father!

She excelled in Palestinian karate, However,Israeli army shattered her dreams with an airstrike on her home, resulting in the amputation of her foot and a severe head injury pic.twitter.com/q3p4gEj3TO

— Nour Naim| نور نعيم (@NourNaim88) December 26, 2023

He explained that the medical teams have carried out numerous surgeries to save her, however, there is nothing much to be done amid the limited medical capabilities in Gaza’s hospitals and the lack of medical devices and equipment necessary to deal with cases due to the Israeli aggression.

Nagham is the Palestinian karate champion, and a distinguished and well-known sports figure in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, who has won numerous championships.

“Nagham’s dreams of excellence and winning regional and international championships were shattered as soon as she was hit by the Israeli bombing,” he added.

“I fear for her health. Nagham has not woken up until this moment, due to the lack of access to the necessary treatment in Gaza,” Marwa said, calling on global sports federations to intervene to save his daughter’s life.

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