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Last update - 23:20 10/10/2008
Israel grants rare entry to cancer-stricken Iranian boy
By The Associated Press
Tags: Iran, cancer, Israel news

A 12-year-old cancer-stricken Iranian boy arrived at an Israeli hospital on Friday for emergency treatment on his brain tumor.

The boy - who was identified only as Roy, to protect his privacy - was wheeled on a stretcher into the Sheba Medical Center near Tel Aviv, after treatments in Iran and Turkey failed. His face was puffy, apparently due to the drugs administered to ease his pain.

Israel granted the child a special permit to enter the country and he arrived at Ben Gurion Airport on Friday. The rare arrangement was mediated by an Israeli businessman of Iranian origin. The boy was accompanied to the hospital by his father and veiled mother, who were also granted special entry permits into Israel.
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Iran and Israel are bitter enemies and have no formal relations. Iran's president has denied the Holocaust and repeatedly called for Israel to be wiped off the map.

Sheba CEO Zeev Rotstein said it wasn't the first time Israeli doctors have treated children from adversarial states.

"We hope that with the love and affection we give these kids we are paving the way for at least some understanding between people," he said. "We can't change the politics. We are not politicians. We do this because we feel it is our job."

Israel is home to world-class hospitals and state-of-the-art medical technology.

Dr. Amos Toren, head of Sheba's Pediatric Hemato-Oncology Department, said his initial diagnosis was that the boy's year- old growth was the most aggressive tumor that exists among brain tumors.

"He is conscious and he can smile but it is hard," he said. "We will give him the most modern treatment possible and maybe we will be able to help him."

Rotstein said the child had been operated on before and may need another procedure in Israel.

"There are very limited things you can do," he said. "But if this kid has any chance, it is here."

He said the hospital kept the identities of patients from countries hostile to Israel secret, so that they would not face danger upon their return home. Iran and several other Middle East countries oppose any type of normalization with Israel.

Rotstein said he hoped treatments, like those of Roy, would help break down some of those barriers.

"As far as we are concerned, we are not involved in politics," he said. "He is from a country that doesn't really like our existence here, but I think part of our job is to prove to countries like Iran that we are here to help the regular people."

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      1.   I wonder if this is reported in the Iranian press? 21:15  |  Adam in Texas 10/10/08
      2.   truly amazing or is there more to this story 21:17  |  Curious 10/10/08
      3.   News that makes one proud to be an Israeli 21:45  |  Gil 10/10/08
      4.   Israel -a light unto nations 22:06  |  don 10/10/08
      5.   Piety that his name is anonymous 22:09  |  HS 10/10/08
      6.   # 3. Curious. Not that amazing, just not often in the press. 22:09  |  Stephen. 10/10/08
      7.   This story should be published in the media abroad 22:16  |  Benjamina 10/10/08
      8.   One of the reasons why Israel is Loved by so many 22:21  |  Gina 10/10/08
      9.   No barriers will be broken 22:29  |  judith 10/10/08
      10.   another lay 22:36  |  farrokh 10/10/08
      11.   Natallie Durson, where are you? 22:41  |  Jerusalem Jew 10/10/08
      12.   Always the same 22:43  |  Armand 10/10/08
      13.   iranian biy 23:00  |  dariush 10/10/08
      14.   Israel 23:08  |  Persian Kitty 10/10/08
      15.   Curious 23:22  |  Persian Kitty 10/10/08
      16.   HS # 5 Prayer 23:33  |  Bill H. 10/10/08
      17.   to #7. Benjamina 23:38  |  BigBird 10/10/08
      18.   farrokh from tampa 23:41  |  David Israel 10/10/08
      19.   Well done, Israel !!! 00:24  |  Swiss (Dino) 11/10/08
      20.   For Farrokh #10 / Iranian Boy 00:24  |  dariush 11/10/08
      21.   Farrokh 00:37  |  truly yours 11/10/08
      22.   Israel has treated HUNDREDS in the last 3 years alone 00:37  |  Zvi 11/10/08
      23.   #17 Bigbird 00:52  |  HS 11/10/08
      24.   Adam in Houston - PressTV 01:04  |  Mark of Lewiston 11/10/08
      25.   In exchange, we can send Ben Jabo Ben Tize to an iranian hospital 01:36  |  Aounist 11/10/08
      26.   Hoping for a full recovery! 01:54  |  Free Gilad Shalit 11/10/08
      27.   #2 curious 02:16  |  another curious soul 11/10/08
      28.   Not to be depressing or anything but... 02:21  |  Aphemia 11/10/08
      29.   Iran 1000000++ Israel 1 02:56  |  Iranian 11/10/08
      30.   Israel and its great humanitarian care even of their sworn enemy 03:12  |  glenna 11/10/08
      31.   A PERFECT COUNTRY OF ISRAEL 03:21  |  indrajaya 11/10/08
      32.   Offer Free Treatment To Sick Iranian Citizens? 03:32  |  NoToStupidRules 11/10/08
      33.   I ask we all might say ... 03:45  |  Morris Valentine 11/10/08
      34.   Well done, swiss d !!! 03:49  |  CK Tan 11/10/08
      35.   #26 iranian OBSCURES 1000000++ with 1 04:10  |  CK Tan 11/10/08
      36.   #11 04:24  |  Sank 11/10/08
      37.   Not so, Iranian 04:32  |  Slibovitz 11/10/08
      38.   HS #5 04:49  |  Bonnie 11/10/08
      39.   Indrajaya #31 04:51  |  Bonnie 11/10/08
      40.   Kol Hakavod!!!! 05:08  |  Iranian jew 11/10/08
      41.   #35 05:23  |  BigBird 11/10/08
      42.   #10 Farrokh 07:17  |  Daniela 11/10/08
      43.   for # 35 07:20  |  dariush 11/10/08
      44.   #iranian 07:27  |  Daniela 11/10/08
      45.   Aonist still the hatred? Not very attractive 07:42  |  x-ray 11/10/08
      46.   What !! not even a whisper 07:42  |  MJ 11/10/08
      47.   #9, judith 08:02  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 11/10/08
      48.   Political grandstanding 08:03  |  Natallie Durson 11/10/08
      49.   ISRAELI PEOPLE 08:41  |  Mehran from Iran 11/10/08
      50.   Heartless Durson 08:43  |  Doctor 11/10/08
      51.   Big Bird - It is a gilded cage 08:54  |  Slibovitz 11/10/08
      52.   #48 Nathalie Durson 09:03  |  Daniela 11/10/08
      53.   Natallie, not cured of antisemitism 09:18  |  Israeli citizen 11/10/08
      54.   to 29 09:23  |  Dariush 11/10/08
      55.   Actually, Israeli hospitals keep admitting Arabs from the Gaza 09:28  |  Avni 11/10/08
      56.   Natallie Durson Had to come and sing a wrong note, a cacophony... 09:35  |  S 11/10/08
      57.   #.48 Natallie Durson. 09:39  |  Stephen. 11/10/08
      58.   a beautiful gesture by israel! 09:47  |  eric 11/10/08
      59.   # 1 to adam in texas re: reporting 09:48  |  eric 11/10/08
      60.   We can only wish full recover to this boy 10:10  |  maurice 11/10/08
      61.   Aounist 10:10  |  truly yours 11/10/08
      62.   Natallie Durson 10:14  |  truly yours 11/10/08
      63.   Sorry:13201 applications, 8796 admitted from Gaza in 2008 10:15  |  Arthur 11/10/08
      64.   Go Luck to "Roy" 10:58  |  Scott G 11/10/08
      65.   Thank you for helping an Iranian boy:) 10:59  |  elinor from Iran 11/10/08
      66.   may hashem help this afflicted boy 11:09  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 11/10/08
      67.   BEST Wishes to "Roy" for a speedy and full recovery 11:33  |  PETER SM 11/10/08
      68.   Nathalie Durson # 48. 11:45  |  David Nigel Braham 11/10/08
      69.   Mother of an Israeli handicapped boy had laid dead for days 11:51  |  Absolute Sweden 11/10/08
      70.   DURSON.They chose Israel because it HAS the facilities.Upsets you 12:06  |  PETER SM 11/10/08
      71.   ANOTHER curious soul.A simple question & bypass your conspiracies 12:13  |  PETER SM 11/10/08
      72.   Dear G-D, please help the surgeons to rescue Roy`s life 12:23  |  Alicia 11/10/08
      73.   Israel has a very low bar for self congratulation 12:24  |  Natallie Durson 11/10/08
      74.   DURSON.Can`t just wish the child well can you? 12:59  |  PETER SM 11/10/08
      75.   Sicker than the Patient 13:06  |  guy 11/10/08
      76.   Mi Shebeirach 13:21  |  Pepe 11/10/08
      77.   Hey Natalie thats funny 13:24  |  mark hammond 11/10/08
      78.   IRANIAN is WRONG! 13:50  |  Iranian Jew 11/10/08
      79.   Avni of Rehovot, #55 13:53  |  Thank you 11/10/08
      80.   Ignorant people such as ND 14:44  |  Nicole 11/10/08
      81.   Iranian Boy 15:00  |  Mehran 11/10/08
      82.   We all need to hope cases like this happen all over the world. 15:06  |  The Equalizer 11/10/08
      83.   Iranian 29 15:11  |  Charles 11/10/08
      84.   Rare entry???? 15:15  |  Harriet 11/10/08
      85.   nice to see 15:24  |  alan 11/10/08
      86.   Iranian Jew, no one was/is harmed just for being a Jew. 15:40  |  ManintheMiddle 11/10/08
      87.   Debate here only plays into the hands of the Mullahs 15:56  |  Tehran Joe 11/10/08
      88.   Nathalie Durson 16:05  |  Daniela 11/10/08
      89.   If.......... 16:20  |  Ben 11/10/08
      90.   ManInthe Middle 16:37  |  x-ray 11/10/08
      91.   #86 13 jews are missing in iran with no trace 16:43  |  farhad 11/10/08
      92.   curing people on stolen land does not make it okay 17:00  |  john 11/10/08
      93.   #92 John 17:30  |  Daniela 11/10/08
      94.   john just as well Israel`s land isn`t stolen, then, isn;t it? 17:46  |  x-ray 11/10/08
      95.   Israel grants rare entry to cancer-stricken Iranian boy 18:01  |  david 11/10/08
      96.   Please give me for next sixty years 18:16  |  farrokh 11/10/08
      97.   Barrier breaker by Ahmedinajad 18:55  |  Shimon Cleopas 11/10/08
      98.   Natallie 18:59  |  Charles 11/10/08
      99.   To Iranian Jew in Israel 19:00  |  Persian Kitty 11/10/08
      100.   Harriet 19:08  |  Persian Kitty 11/10/08
      101.   CHEAP PROPAGANDA 19:38  |  indrajaya 11/10/08
      102.   8796 Gazans treated in Israel in 2008 (Jan-June) 19:40  |  Arthur 11/10/08
      103.   Natallie Durson you want to be the news, but the child is 19:42  |  Israeli citizen 11/10/08
      104.   @101 20:34  |  farançawi 11/10/08
      105.   Who`s going to pay for this. 20:43  |  Moshe 11/10/08
      106.   Indrajaya: and if it is not propaganda? 21:39  |  Israeli citizen 11/10/08
      107.   Why don`t we hear from "our friend" Dutch now uh??? 21:54  |  Benjamina 11/10/08
      108.   Durson`s mindset. 22:05  |  Nazi hunter 11/10/08
      109.   POOR INDRAJAYA:exhasted from her meltdonw 23:02  |  Arie 11/10/08
      110.   Re: #92 23:05  |  Name 11/10/08
      111.   children of the world 23:16  |  ron 11/10/08
      112.   Farhad, what`s your point? 00:17  |  ManintheMiddle 12/10/08
      113.   INDRAJAYA beat the "PROPOGANDA"with better under Mullah dictators 00:30  |  PETER SM 12/10/08
      114.   Stop this pure political exploitation of a poor sick boy. 00:30  |  Moise 12/10/08
      115.   Long live Israel, Long live Iran 00:42  |  Kourosh 12/10/08
      116.   #92 John in London: the brits surrendered already 00:43  |  Arie 12/10/08
      117.   Natalie Durson, Jew Lover 01:46  |  Adam Newman 12/10/08
      118.   Ha`Aretz has got it so wrong....why?? 01:55  |  EGW 12/10/08
      119.   #92 John from London-Stolen lands 02:03  |  Alan 12/10/08
      120.   #90 persian kitty 04:30  |  farhad 12/10/08
      121.   Good Idea 05:14  |  Mark Lincoln 12/10/08
      122.   this is one of the differences between Israel and Gaza/Iran. 11:03  |  Marco 12/10/08
      123.   No. 27 Curios 20:16  |  Mexi 12/10/08
      124.   Israel grants rare entry to cancer-stricken Iranian boy 20:55  |  Dennis Young, Jr. 12/10/08
      125.   Israel grants rare entry to Iranian boy 03:44  |  Luiz Felipe Haddad 13/10/08
      126.   Iranian boy receives care in ISRAEL! 08:48  |  Richard Shapiro 13/10/08
      127.   Impressive 00:34  |  Persian Hero 14/10/08
      128.   Facial tissues needed! 13:08  |  Mahdi 14/10/08
      129.   Mistake 15:36  |  Dr. Mike 14/10/08
      130.   A WORD TO THE WISE !!! 23:20  |  JIM 16/10/08
      131.   Iran/Israel 05:08  |  Iranian 17/10/08
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