A 10-day-old baby to Syrian parents who live in Cyprus was flown to Israel on Thursday to undergo an emergency procedure to correct a severe congenital heart defect.
The baby boy was flown in a specialized ambulance plane after the complex operation was expedited by the Israeli Embassy in Nicosia, the Cypriot Health Ministry, and Israeli and Cypriot doctors.
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Israel's Ambassador to Cyprus, Sammy Revel, told Israel Hayom: "The Syrian baby was born with a rare heart defect. The Cypriot Health Ministry turned to us, and we received all the necessary permits from the authorities in Israel. On Thursday [the baby] was urgently flown via air ambulance to Israel, and was immediately transferred to Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer. He is supposed to undergo life-saving surgery there. This is an expression of solidarity, to save the life of a baby is always the right thing to do."
In January 2018, Israeli doctors helped save a three-day-old Syrian baby who was also flown in from Cyprus.
Israel has treated thousands of sick and wounded Syrians throughout the country's long-running civil war.
In 2016, the IDF launched a humanitarian aid program dubbed Operation Good Neighbor to "provide humanitarian aid to as many people as possible while maintaining Israel's policy of non-involvement in the [Syrian] conflict," according to the IDF's official website.
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