Arab Woman Receives Kidney from Jewish Man Killed in Violence
2021-05-26
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1An Arab woman has received a kidney from a Jewish man killed in clashes between Arabs and Jews in the Israeli city of Lod.
2The man, 56-year-old Yigal Yehoshua, died May 17 after being hit by rocks during riots in Lod, a mixed city of Israel's Jews and Arabs.
3The violence followed protests and clashes in Jerusalem that also led to an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas.
4In the violence in Lod and other mixed cities inside Israel, groups of Arabs and Jews fought each other in the streets.
5Rioters also burned cars and businesses.
6But after a series of violent days, there was a rare moment of hope.
7Randa Aweis, a 58-year-old mother of six, got one of Yehoshua's kidneys after a 10-year wait.
8Yehoshua was registered as an organ donor and his kidney was identified as a medical fit for Aweis.
9"I could not believe it," Aweis told The Associated Press from the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem.
10"I'm telling you, I couldn't believe it."
11She added: "People say he was a good man, that he didn't do any harm, so why was he murdered? ... That's forbidden. There must be peace between Jews and Arabs, real peace."
12Israelis have come to expect periodic unrest in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
13But the latest violence shocked many Israelis by spilling over into other areas.
14The clashes hit closer to home for Israelis than at any point since the 2000 Palestinian intifada, or uprising, which lasted more than five years.
15Israel's Arab citizens, who make up 20 percent of the population, said the violence was rooted in longstanding tensions.
16Israeli Arabs have citizenship, including the right to vote, but they face widespread discrimination.
17They also have close familial ties to the Palestinians and largely identify with their movement.
18This leads many Jewish Israelis to treat them with suspicion.
19Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke about the Jewish man's death when it was announced last week.
20"I share in the sorrow of the family of the late Yigal Yehoshua who was murdered in a lynch carried out by Arab rioters in Lod," he said.
21"We will settle accounts with whoever participated in this murder; nobody will escape punishment," he added.
22Police have arrested several suspects in connection with the violence.
23Aweis never met Yehoshua, but she did speak to his wife on a tearful video call.
24She said she hopes to visit his family in person once she has recovered from the kidney transplant.
25"Yigal saved me," Aweis said.
26"And as much as I say thank you to the family, to everyone, it's not enough."
27I'm Bryan Lynn.
1An Arab woman has received a kidney from a Jewish man killed in clashes between Arabs and Jews in the Israeli city of Lod. 2The man, 56-year-old Yigal Yehoshua, died May 17 after being hit by rocks during riots in Lod, a mixed city of Israel's Jews and Arabs. 3The violence followed protests and clashes in Jerusalem that also led to an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas. 4In the violence in Lod and other mixed cities inside Israel, groups of Arabs and Jews fought each other in the streets. Rioters also burned cars and businesses. 5But after a series of violent days, there was a rare moment of hope. Randa Aweis, a 58-year-old mother of six, got one of Yehoshua's kidneys after a 10-year wait. Yehoshua was registered as an organ donor and his kidney was identified as a medical fit for Aweis. 6"I could not believe it," Aweis told The Associated Press from the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem. "I'm telling you, I couldn't believe it." 7She added: "People say he was a good man, that he didn't do any harm, so why was he murdered? ... That's forbidden. There must be peace between Jews and Arabs, real peace." 8Israelis have come to expect periodic unrest in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. But the latest violence shocked many Israelis by spilling over into other areas. The clashes hit closer to home for Israelis than at any point since the 2000 Palestinian intifada, or uprising, which lasted more than five years. 9Israel's Arab citizens, who make up 20 percent of the population, said the violence was rooted in longstanding tensions. Israeli Arabs have citizenship, including the right to vote, but they face widespread discrimination. They also have close familial ties to the Palestinians and largely identify with their movement. This leads many Jewish Israelis to treat them with suspicion. 10Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke about the Jewish man's death when it was announced last week. "I share in the sorrow of the family of the late Yigal Yehoshua who was murdered in a lynch carried out by Arab rioters in Lod," he said. 11"We will settle accounts with whoever participated in this murder; nobody will escape punishment," he added. 12Police have arrested several suspects in connection with the violence. 13Aweis never met Yehoshua, but she did speak to his wife on a tearful video call. She said she hopes to visit his family in person once she has recovered from the kidney transplant. 14"Yigal saved me," Aweis said. "And as much as I say thank you to the family, to everyone, it's not enough." 15I'm Bryan Lynn. 16The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 17We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. 18___________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20forbid - v. to order someone not to do something 21lynch - v. to kill someone who has not been found guilty of a crime at a legal trial 22participate - v. to take part in or become involved in an activity 23transplant - n. a medical operation in which an unhealthy organ is replaced with a healthy one