"The doctors did not give up, it was a real miracle"
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| Grandmother of Nahum Navis, who was severely wounded in recent Gush Etzion attack |
Rachel Silvetzky, grandmother of Nahum Nevis, who was severely wounded last month at the Elazar Junction in Gush Etzion, and who yesterday (Monday) regained full cognitive recognition, tells of his condition, the rehabilitation process, and the revealed miracle.
"I thank Am Yisrael [the Jewish People] for their prayers. Last night, my grandson, Nahim Elimelech Rafael, came out of intensive care and was moved to a regular ward. He understands what people are saying, but cannot speak. When we asked him how he feels, he moved his lips and said with no voice, "Barukh HaShem," described Silvetzky.
"I thank the doctors and staff at Hadassah Hospital, the Chief Rabbis, the Rabbi of Jerusalem - Rabbi Stern - who came to visit, and the Rosh Yeshiva [Yeshiva visionary leader] of Yeshivat Mercaz - Rabbi Yaakov Shapira - who has been coming every Friday to give Nahum birkat Kohanim [the priestly blessing]. There is still a long road ahead and we thank G-d and hope he will return to his former self."
She said that the music teacher who taught Nahum to play the harp came to the hospital on Saturday night and played at his bedside. "He smiled and moved his mouth - this is part of his healing."
"It is really a miracle, a revealed miracle - that Nahum came to the hospital was a miracle, that they even performed surgery on him is a miracle, because he was not responding at all," said the grandmother excitedly. "The doctors did not give up; they said, 'This boy is 17 years old and we're fighting for him.' And after the complex surgery both pupils responded. There were a few days when the doctors said the situation was 50/50 and we didn't know if he would come out of this. After a week, on Saturday morning, he began to move and we knew there was hope."
Rachel Silvetzky also spoke about the recovery of her granddaughter Noam Aliza, who was also injured in the attack, though less severely than her brother Nahum. The two grandchildren were on their way to spend Shabbat [Sabbath] with their family.
"Noam Aliza is a happy and cheerful girl, like her name, and she is undergoing physical therapy that is not easy, but she is doing so with a smile, and hopes to return to dancing. She plays the piano wonderfully and she hopes that she will return to doing the other things she used to do. When Noam was still in a fragile state in the hospital, she requested from those who were with her to say hello to the first graders that she took care of as part of her volunteer National Service."
As mentioned, the 17-year-old Nahum came to Hadassah on the day of the attack last month in critical condition with a serious head injury. He was immediately operated on by neurosurgeon Dr. Samuel Moskovitzi and anesthetist Dr. Abu-Jaris Thamer in a complex surgery that saved his life.
His family, who is staying by his side constantly, requests that people continue to pray for his recovery and to avoid visits, as he is still weak and needs rest and further treatment. His name for Hebrew prayer is: Nahum Elimelech Raphael ben Zehava Rivka.
Hadassah Hospital reported that he is communicating with his family, performing tasks on command, and recovering slowly, and that yesterday was transferred from the neurosurgical intensive care unit to a regular inpatient ward.