14-year-old Palestinian, Suheyb Ismail Mutawwak, who was seriously injured in an Israeli attack while heading to an aid distribution point in northwestern Gaza, lost the ability to speak and chew due to his injuries.
Despite months of treatment, Suheyb, unable to speak, is surviving with the help of his mother.
Suheyb, who lives with his family in the northern Gaza Strip, went to the aid distribution point in the hope of finding food for his younger siblings due to the long blockade and hunger.
However, this trip changed his life irreversibly.
Seriously injured in the Israeli attack, the child lost the ability to speak and can no longer consume solid food.
His mother, Siham Nabil Mutawwak, said her son was a healthy and happy child before the attack.
Stating that they had no food at home before they went to get the aid, she said: "That day, my son told me, Mom I'm going to go with my friends, I'm going to find something especially for my siblings. He hadn't eaten cakes or cookies for a long time. He was very happy when he heard that these were among the aid."
The mother said that about an hour later, she received news that her son had been shot and that doctors called her to inform her that he had been taken to Shifa Hospital.
Mutawwak described the scene he witnessed in the hospital as "the most difficult moment of his life."
According to doctors, a piece of metal from an assault shell entered Suhejb's shoulder and exited through his chin.
The child, who suffered serious injuries to his chin and tongue, underwent several surgeries.
However, despite all the interventions, he lost the ability to speak.
"When he regained consciousness after the surgery, we realized he couldn't speak. He has a fractured jaw and can't open his mouth. Doctors say he needs a jaw transplant and some implants. He needs some more surgeries, but there are no resources in Gaza," Mutawwak said.
Suheyb, who was forced to migrate with his family to the ez-Zevayide area in the central part of Gaza City after the attack, currently lives in a tent.
Due to the Israeli blockade, access to medicine, medical supplies, and sufficient food is almost impossible.
Stating that the damage to Suhaib's jaw is still ongoing, the mother said: "Almost every week a piece of bone falls out of his mouth. There is blood. Once he almost drowned."
The mother said that her son, who has lost the ability to speak, expresses his feelings by writing on the phone and that he is most upset that he cannot leave Gaza for treatment.
The little boy often asks his mother, "Why can some people go, but I can't?"
Stressing that her son is very psychologically tired, she said: "He sees people, he sees those who go abroad for treatment. He keeps everything inside. Since he cannot speak, he expresses everything by writing." /AA/
