Graduating Syrian-British doctor meets family of deceased medic who inspired him

Karim Al-Jian, 24, who was born in Aleppo but raised in Britain (L) and Dr. Abbas Khan, an orthopaedic surgeon from London who was killed in a Syrian prison. (Courtesy: Twitter account @Idlibie)
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Updated 03 August 2021
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Graduating Syrian-British doctor meets family of deceased medic who inspired him

  • UK inquest found Abbas Khan was unlawfully killed in regime prison
  • Karim Al-Jian: ‘Someone out of the goodness of their heart went to this country — where they have no connection — to save lives’

LONDON: A newly qualified Syrian-born British doctor has had an emotional meeting with the siblings of the deceased British surgeon who inspired him to enter the field.
Karim Al-Jian, 24, who was born in Aleppo but raised in Britain, recently met with the brother and sister of Dr. Abbas Khan, an orthopaedic surgeon from London who was killed in a Syrian prison after he left the safety of his home to care for victims in the war-torn nation.

Al-Jian posted a photo of himself with a portrait of Khan with the caption: “In 2012 British surgeon Abbas Khan went to Aleppo, Syria to treat wounded civilians. He was consequently tortured and murdered by the Syrian regime. His story touched many, including a … boy from Aleppo who wanted to be like Dr. Khan. Today that boy graduated a doctor.”

Khan’s sister Sara, 31, asked Twitter users to locate Al-Jian. “This is so touching it has brought tears to my eyes,” she wrote. “I would like to send him a message if possible.”

The BBC organized a meeting between the new medic and Khan’s family. Sara told Al-Jian: “It is inspiring the fact that you dedicated your medical career to Abbas. I cannot explain to you how touched my family and I are. It was so beautiful to read it.”

The deceased doctor’s brother Shah, who is also an orthopaedic surgeon, has said he will keep in touch with Al-Jian to give him advice about his career path. Al-Jian intends to share the same specialism as the Khan brothers.

Al-Jian said when he was a teenager, he saw the news of Khan’s sacrifice, which inspired him to turn to medical training.

On his graduation and eight years after the surgeon’s death, Al-Jian paid tribute to Khan on social media, posing with his portrait while donning his academic robes.
Khan traveled to Syria via Turkey to lend his expertise by assisting the victims of bombed hospitals, which were being regularly targeted by regime forces.
He was arrested and jailed for over a year in a regime-controlled prison. In December 2013, he was found hanging in his cell. He was 32. A British inquest in 2014 concluded that he had been unlawfully killed.
Al-Jian said Khan’s story had an enormous impact on him, and he shared in the pain and suffering that he saw.

“That someone out of the goodness of their heart went to this country — where they have no connection — to save lives was astounding to me. He put the lives of others before himself,” said Al-Jian. “I really felt that his mother’s pain was the pain of hundreds of thousands of Syrians.”

Living in northern England at the time, Al-Jian was awarded a place to study on the country’s south coast at Brighton and Sussex Medical School. He graduated last month after five years. 


Iranian authorities expand ban on dog walking

Iranians walk their dogs in a park in Tehran on June 8, 2025. (AFP)
Updated 13 sec ago
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Iranian authorities expand ban on dog walking

  • Local authorities have periodically introduced bans on walking dogs in public spaces or carrying them in vehicles as part of a wider campaign to discourage their ownership

TEHRAN: Iranian authorities have expanded a ban on walking dogs in public to multiple cities nationwide, citing public health, social order and safety concerns, domestic media reported on Sunday.
The ban —which echoes a 2019 police directive that barred walking dogs in Tehran — was expanded to Ilam city in the west on Sunday, according to reports.
At least 17 other cities recently introduced similar bans, including Isfahan in the center and Kerman in the south.
Owning and walking dogs has been a contentious topic since the 1979 revolution in Iran, though there is no law outrightly banning dog ownership.
Many religious scholars, however, consider petting dogs or coming into contact with their saliva as "najis" or ritually impure, while some officials view them as a symbol of Western cultural influence.
Local authorities have periodically introduced bans on walking dogs in public spaces or carrying them in vehicles as part of a wider campaign to discourage their ownership.
Enforcing the restrictions has been largely inconsistent, as many owners continue to walk their dogs in Tehran and elsewhere across Iran.
On Sunday, the Etemad newspaper quoted an official from Ilam city as saying that "legal action will be taken against violators."
On Saturday, a state newspaper said the latest measures are aimed at "maintaining public order, ensuring safety and protecting public health."
"Dog walking is a threat to public health, peace and comfort," said Abbas Najafi, prosecutor of the western city of Hamedan, as quoted by Iran newspaper.
In 2021, some 75 lawmakers condemned pet ownership as a "destructive social problem," saying it could "gradually change the Iranian and Islamic way of life."
In 2017, Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, said that "keeping dogs for reasons other than herding, hunting, and guard dogs is considered reprehensible."
"If this practice resembles that of non-Muslims, promotes their culture, or causes harm and disturbance to neighbours, it is deemed forbidden," he added.

 


Israeli bulldozers flatten more Palestinian buildings in Tulkarm refugee camp

Updated 08 June 2025
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Israeli bulldozers flatten more Palestinian buildings in Tulkarm refugee camp

  • Entire residential area reduced to rubble in recent days, residents say
  • Israeli forces plan to destroy 58 structures in Tulkarm, 48 in Nur Shams

LONDON: Israeli forces have conducted demolitions for the third consecutive day in the Palestinian refugee camp of Tulkarm in the northern part of the West Bank, the site of military operations since January.

On Sunday, Israeli bulldozers resumed demolition of numerous residential buildings in the camp. The demolitions are part of the destruction plan of 58 structures in Tulkarm and 48 in the Nur Shams refugee camp.

More than 250 housing units and dozens of commercial establishments have been destroyed in both locations, according to Wafa news agency.

Residents say that an entire residential area in the Tulkarm camp has been reduced to rubble in recent days, with debris hindering access to surrounding buildings.

Israeli operations in Tulkarm for the past 133 days and in Nur Shams for the past 120 days have resulted in the deaths of 13 Palestinians and the displacement of almost 25,000 residents.

At least 400 homes have been destroyed and 2,573 damaged after Israeli forces sealed off roads and entrances with earth barriers and barred Palestinian residents from returning, the Wafa added.


Egyptian, Turkish FMs discuss Gaza ceasefire, mass graves in Libya

Updated 08 June 2025
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Egyptian, Turkish FMs discuss Gaza ceasefire, mass graves in Libya

  • Ministers warn of a ‘humanitarian disaster’ in war-ravaged Palestinian enclave
  • They also discussed the discovery of dozens of bodies in mass graves in the Libyan capital, Tripoli

LONDON: Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty discussed developments in Gaza and Libya with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan.

The ministers, during a phone call on Sunday, highlighted the urgency of a ceasefire in Gaza and described the situation there as a “humanitarian disaster” amid Israeli attacks and military actions in the area.

They discussed efforts to achieve a ceasefire, secure the release of Israeli hostages and ensure the delivery of humanitarian, medical and shelter aid to the enclave.

Abdelatty and Fidan discussed recent developments in Libya, including the discovery of dozens of bodies in mass graves in the capital, Tripoli.

The Egyptian minister highlighted Cairo’s support for Libya’s unity and integrity, ensuring that Libyans can hold presidential and parliamentary elections simultaneously, without interference, as soon as possible, Kuwait News Agency reported.

Abdelatty said that Cairo and Ankara continue to cooperate in the economic, investment and trade sectors, and exchange views on urgent regional matters.


Israel vows to prevent an aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists from reaching Gaza

Updated 08 June 2025
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Israel vows to prevent an aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists from reaching Gaza

  • The vessel departed Sicily last Sunday on a mission that aims to break the sea blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid, while raising awareness over the growing humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave

Israel’s defense minister has vowed to prevent an aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists from reaching the Gaza Strip.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said Sunday that Israel wouldn’t allow anyone to break its naval blockade of the Palestinian territory, which he said was aimed at preventing Hamas from importing arms.
Thunberg, a climate campaigner is among 12 activists aboard the Madleen, which is operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. The vessel departed Sicily last Sunday on a mission that aims to break the sea blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid, while raising awareness over the growing humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave.
The activists had said they planned to reach Gaza’s territorial waters as early as Sunday.
Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament who is of Palestinian descent, is among the others onboard. She has been barred from entering Israel because of her opposition to Israeli policies toward the Palestinians.
After a three-month total blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas, Israel started allowing some basic aid into Gaza last month, but humanitarian workers have warned of famine unless the blockade and the war end.
An attempt last month by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed after another of the group’s vessels was attacked by two drones while sailing in international waters off Malta. The group blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the front section of the ship.


Gaza rescuers say 10 killed in Israeli attacks

Updated 08 June 2025
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Gaza rescuers say 10 killed in Israeli attacks

  • The civilians had been heading to an aid distribution center west of Rafah, near a site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation
  • The United Nations refuses to work with the GHF, citing concerns over its practices and neutrality

GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories: Gaza’s civil defense agency said Israeli attacks on Sunday killed at least 10 people including two girls in the Palestinian territory, as the Israel-Hamas war entered its 21st month.

“Five martyrs and dozens of wounded were taken to Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis after the (Israeli) occupation forces opened fire on civilians at around 6:00 am,” agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said.

The civilians had been heading to an aid distribution center west of Rafah, near a site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-backed group that has come under criticism from the United Nations and humanitarian agencies.

The United Nations refuses to work with the GHF, citing concerns over its practices and neutrality.

Asked to comment on the latest killings, the Israeli military said it fired on people who “continued advancing in a way that endangered the soldiers” despite warnings.

It said the area around the distribution point had been declared an “active combat zone” at night.

“Around 4:30 am, people started gathering in the Al-Alam area of Rafah. After about an hour and a half, hundreds moved toward the site and the army opened fire,” eyewitness Abdallah Nour Al-Din said.

Outside the Nasser hospital, where the emergency workers brought the casualties, AFPTV footage showed mourners crying over blood-stained body-bags.

“I can’t see you like this,” said Lin Al-Daghma by her father’s body, while a man lay over his brother’s corpse.

They gave the same account as Din, and spoke of the struggle to access food aid after more than two months of a total Israeli blockade of Gaza, despite a recent easing.

Dozens of people have been killed near distribution points since late May, according to the civil defense.

Bassal said another five people, including two young girls, were killed around at 1:00 a.m. in a strike that hit a tent in the Al-Mawasi displaced persons camp in southern Gaza.