THE BOY IN THE RUBBLE
How did he survive? Six-year-old’s amazing rescue after Russian air strike buries him alive in Aleppo
EVEN by the appalling standards of the Syrian civil war, the footage is harrowing in the extreme.
A little boy lies entombed in the remains of a building following a Russian air attack on rebel-held eastern Aleppo.
All that is visible amid the twisted concrete and steel is the top of his small head. His dark hair is bloodied and covered in masonry dust.
But as rescue workers scrape at the rubble, a muted scream is heard – the terrified boy is still breathing.
Working by torchlight for hours with just their bare hands, his rescuers haul lumps of concrete away and, miraculously, the boy is pulled out alive. Workers cry ‘God is great’ in Arabic as the boy emerges from the ruins.
Amazingly, the boy, Mohammed, aged six, was taken to hospital with only minor injuries, and was later reunited with his father. It is believed both his mother and his sevenyear-old sister died when their family home was destroyed on Thursday by a Russian jet, according to activists.
The video footage went viral yesterday after it was shared by Mohammed’s rescuers. The short clip portrays just one desperate struggle for life in a city where death visits daily.
Russian air strikes in eastern Aleppo resumed last week after a month-long ceasefire. Yesterday, the World Health Organisation said all makeshift hospitals there are out of service, after five days of air and artillery strikes in which at least 63 people are said to have been killed, and 363 more wounded.
The footage of Mohammed’s rescue was released by the Syrian Defence Force, known as the White Helmets. The group – nominated for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize – comprises about 60 poorly equipped workers who risk their own lives to save trapped civilians in the aftermath of air strikes.
It took the White Helmets four hours to shift the rubble trapping Mohammed and pull him free.
Despite blood oozing from a head wound, the boy does not cry throughout his long ordeal, and can even be heard answering questions in Arabic. But it is believed his quiet demeanour may have been the result of shock.
The US government last night condemned the targeting of hospitals in Aleppo, including the city’s only children’s hospital.
US National Security spokeswoman Susan Rice said: ‘The United States condemns these horrific attacks against medical infrastructure and humanitarian aid workers. There is no excuse for these heinous actions. The US again joins our partners in calling on Russia to immediately de-escalate violence and facilitate humanitarian aid and access for the Syrian people.’
International Development Secretary Priti Patel said: ‘The bombing of the last functioning hospital in Aleppo is part of a systematic campaign to remove even the most basic of services left in the city.’