A Lebanese father of eight from the township of Zahleh, who was suffering from a heart ailment, has been saved after undergoing heart surgery at the Rambam Hospital in Haifa. Antoine Youssef Zerib, 30, had been told by doctors in Lebanon that they couldn’t help him and suggested that he try to reach the Israeli border where he might be treated. He should have undergone open heart surgery months ago but because of the civil war he could not be admitted to any hospital in Lebanon.
Taking the advice of the doctors, Youssef Zerib was driven by a friend to a point near the Israeli-Lebanese “good fence.” As he got out of the car and began to walk toward the fence, he collapsed. An Israeli soldier who noticed this rushed toward the Lebanese and with the help of others brought him to a medical station where the doctors ordered an immediate operation. Youssef Zerib was taken to the Rambam Hospital where surgery was performed to replace a faulty heart valve. His condition is reported to be very satisfactory and he is expected to be discharged within a few days. Youssef Zerib’s case is the latest in a series of medical actions taken to help Lebanese since the “good fence” was opened last April.
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