Chibok boy walks again after 6-hr surgery in Dubai

A child victim of Boko Haram insurgency, Ali Ahmadu, has successfully undergone spinal cord surgery in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, ending his three years on wheelchair.

Ali, who was flown out of the country by Dickens Sanomi Foundation, was operated upon on September 17, barely seven days after arriving at the UAE.

The Dickens Sanomi Foundation, headed by the chairman of Taleveras Group, Mr Igho Sanomi, collaborated with a non-governmental organisation, the Global Initiative for Peace, Love and Care (GIPLC), to ensure recovery of young Ali.

According to records released from Dubai on Sunday, the boy underwent spinal cord surgery at Zulekha Hospital Sharjah in Dubai.

Contrary to doctors’ predictions that Ali would be able to walk after three weeks of recuperation, the boy, without prompting, was on his feet on Sunday.

The doctors at the hospital described Ali’s quick recovery as a “miracle.”

A brief by Igho Sanomi from Dubai said: “Miracles do happen. This is Ali Ahmadu who was run over by Boko Haram terrorists in 2014. The boy and his pregnant mother were left under a tree for three days. The boy was bleeding from mouth and nose throughout the agonising days.

“Ali’s spinal cord was damaged and he could not walk again. For three years, help was needed. God made it possible after five to six hours of surgery and 48 hours in intensive care. Ali can walk again. This happened today to everyone’s surprise.”