‘pray for Alin’
Alin Alsati was shot three times and was last night continuing her brave fight for life in Starship Hospital. Her father Wasseim was also shot and was undergoing surgery yesterday. Alin is a symbol of hope in the face of the unthinkable atrocity in Christchurch which claimed 49 lives. Twelve others remain critical. Before going into the operating theatre, married father-of-four Wasseim made an emotional plea: “Please pray for me and my daughter”.
The 4-year-old girl shot in the Christchurch mosque attacks and flown to hospital in Auckland has been described as a “beautiful, kindhearted sweetheart”.
Alin Alsati was shot up to three times in Friday’s massacre, which took place at the Al Noor mosque and another in Linwood, in which 49 people were killed.
Last night the preschooler, who turns 5 next month and should have been starting school, was still in critical care at Starship children’s hospital with her mother, Asma Daraghmeh, at her bedside.
Her father, Jordanian barber Wasseim Alsati, was gunned down beside her as they worshipped at the Deans Ave mosque about 1.40pm.
Alsati, also known as Wasseim Sati, posted a video to Facebook from his hospital bed yesterday asking friends and family to “please pray for me and my daughter”.
A friend of the family, who did not want to be named, told the
Alin was the youngest of four children, three girls and one boy.
It’s not known if the other children were also at the mosque but none is reported injured.
The friend said Alin was a “beautiful, sweet, kind-hearted, sweetheart with the most amazing eyes”. “We are all in shock, still, and I think we will always be because this doesn’t happen in our city.”
In his video, a barely audible Alsati said he was very tired but managed to thank everyone for their support.
“I will not be able to answer them. I am just posting this video to show you that I am fully okay. God bless you all.”
A friend of Alsati, Carolyne Phillips, posted on his Facebook page yesterday that he had gone in for more surgery to “get shrapnel and bone out of his hip socket”.
“He has already had surgery for a perforated bowel and an injury to his pelvis.”
Alsati in a Facebook post in December said: “One of the major reasons that I have decided to live in New Zealand they don’t care who you are, they just treat you as a human being and you’re allowed to be whatever you want.”
Alsati moved from Jordan’s capital, Amman, to New Zealand in 2014 with his wife and family and worked at Revive Hairdressing. Just three weeks ago he set up his own barbering business, Wass’ Barbers.
A former client and friend of Alsati from Jordan, Fahad Drarjeh, said she woke to the news that her old friend and his daughter had been injured in the devastating attack. The hotel manager based in the United States launched a fundraiser which had drawn donations totalling more than US$8800 ($12,855) in one day.
Friends and former clients paid tribute to Alsati on Facebook calling him “lovely” and a “beautiful soul”.