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Subscribe to RSS"She's happy, we're happy, everybody's happy," says Dr. Salim Abu Khaizaran, who treats the wives of Palestinians being held in Israeli prisons.
TEL AVIV, Israel -- It is surely among the strangest jail break stories ever conceived: a daring escapade in which a determined band of young women beat one of the toughest security regimes in the world.
They are the wives of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails – without the right to conjugal visits – who nevertheless claim to have become pregnant by their husbands.
This isn’t a case of the usual contraband sneaked into a jail to make life a little easier for inmates. It’s what is smuggled out that matters – the stuff of life itself.
Plenty think the plot is far-fetched, but the women insist that armed with little more than cunning and a concealed container, they can ensure that no wall or coil of barbed wire is a barrier to parenthood.
Faridah Ma’arouf laughed as she recalled hurrying out of the prison gates after visiting day was done, hiding a sample of her son’s sperm.
“We had a taxi waiting to take us very fast,’’ she said. “I thought I had to get it to the doctor quickly.’’
It seems to have been a successful operation. Three months later Ma’arouf sat in an IVF clinic where the progress of her daughter-in-law’s pregnancy was being monitored.
It is what could be described as the brainchild of Dr. Salim Abu Khaizaran, head of the Razan Center for Infertility in the Palestinian city of Ramallah on the West Bank.
“We are doing this to help these ladies because we feel as doctors that the wives of prisoners pay a very high price,” Abu Khaizaran said without revealing how many other such procedures he had conducted. “She has to wait for her husband, sometimes she can spend her lovely youth just waiting. And by the time her husband is out, many of them will not be able to have babies.”
NBC News
Faridah Ma'arouf says she smuggled a sample of her son's sperm out of Ofer Prison, above, so that her daughter-in-law could become pregnant.
He added: “The wives lose out twice because the community then pressurizes the husband to marry another woman in order to fulfill his requirements to become a father, which ... I feel is very sad.”
'What are you waiting for?'
Many of the men are serving long sentences for terrorist offenses.
Ammar Al-Zibben has been in prison for 16 years. He is serving 27 life sentences with an additional 25 years for plotting bomb attacks in Jerusalem that killed 21 people.
He is also the recent father of a baby boy, named Mohannad, who is just seven months old.
His wife, Dalal, 32, said the idea to go for IVF was originally her husband’s. The suggestion took her by surprise. She had expected opposition from family and friends in their conservative community.
“I was very surprised when I found them encouraging me enthusiastically,” she said. “Everyone said I should do it and not deny myself and my husband our basic right, to have a family.
“It reached a point where people would stop me in the street and ask me why I still hadn’t done it,” she added. “They would say to me, ‘What are you waiting for? Why are you wasting time?’”
Her husband got to see his son for the first time six months ago.
“The meeting was happy, sad, exciting. It was mixed with a lot of feelings and tears, I can’t describe to you how we both felt,’’ she said.
“I had sacrificed everything when my husband was arrested,” she said. “Now I have been given this opportunity to make my dreams come true, to have the family I always wanted. We will be waiting for my husband to come out and join us.’’
Near-miraculous conceptions
As word spread, the number of prisoners’ wives waiting for the clinic to make their dreams come true has risen, hospital officials said.
Alaa Badarneh / EPA, file
Dalal Rabaya holds her son Mohannad at a hospital in the West Bank town of Nablus on Aug. 13.
They all face the same, daunting obstacle. Typically a prisoner visitor will pass through an airport style scanner, a body search, and then be asked to leave all their possessions in a locker before they get to see their relative. And then they will be separated by glass and speak only by phone.
According to the Israel Prison Service these are near-miraculous conceptions.
“Due to technological and security restrictions that apply to prisoners in their relationship with family members, one can question the ability to smuggle as claimed,’’ Sivan Weizman, spokeswoman for the Prison Authority, said dryly.
If Abu Khaizaran has any idea how samples get from prison cell to fertility clinic, he’s not telling. But the hospital insists on the written word of two close family members that the sperm is indeed that of the husband, he said.
A black-and-white screen showed the outline of a baby in the womb. The loud and rapid beat of its heart reverberated in the fertility clinic’s small ultrasound room.
“This is the head of the baby. And there’s its hand. He’s moving. It’s a boy. Fifteen weeks,” Abu Khaizaran told mother-to-be Lidya Al-Rimawi who had come in for her first scan. “Everything looks fine.’’
Like all the women NBC interviewed, Al-Rimawi was coy when asked how she managed to evade Israeli prison guards and their searches.
“We found much difficulty. But despite the security checks we got through, thanks to God,” she said.
“Each case is different from another,’’ she said when pressed for more detail. “We smuggled it out in a bag, a small nylon bag. But it is difficult to explain how.”
“If I told you the way we smuggled it, definitely the army will prevent it from happening and there are prisoners we don’t want to deprive of this same chance.’’
She beamed as she looked at the image of the fast-growing baby inside her.
“It is a very beautiful feeling,’’ she said. “It is a feeling that cannot be described. It is a miracle.’’
Leave a Comment:
Who cares, i mean really who cares...
certainly not a JEW from new jersey. We all know what you are going to say .... Like a typical neanderthal guided by hate in your sick religeon ...
Me thinks somebody had it in for Ammar!!!
Amazing how the israeli provocateurs are all over this story saying things like "knocked up" and devils spawn". Well , on behalf of the Palestinians, I say, most of you are morons and neanderthals for attacking anything Palestinian. If those poor people knew you felt that way about them they would probably hate americans. They are so frikking inncocent in most cases that I am appalled that they even like us.
We have been infiltrated by jews and zionists masquerading as white americans on these forums to try and turn the tide against Palestinians in america when they haven't done a single thing to us. They haven't even said we hate americans (and they should) since we help israel KILL them most of the time. The rest of the time the israelis just enslave them and put the men in jails for centuries.
All of this will come out and the hand of jews behind it here in the united states will be revelaed. Too bad most of you are ignorant inbred white trash haters that apparently will rain insults and jewish remarks on a baby parade. Shame on you anne stewart for revelaing your own animalistic fornicating capabilities. Disgusting when women belittle womanhood ...Makes you a whore really.
Palestinian women DO NOT CHEAT around and sex is not all about life as it is in the jewish created soddom and gomorrah here in the states. THERE ARE NO PALESTINIAN PORN STARS for example unlike in our (lack of ) culture.
To the few sane ones out there, I plead with you to steer clear of the jewish hate strain they have deposited into this once ideal and fair american culture. We are better than baby haters just because they are Palestinians. Try to weed out who it is that is egging you on and please notice their jewish names like jonathan and sarah .... Beware those who fill your heart with hate against others. These are babies for christs sake....
Oh and 4 q all who will attack me personally like the zionists that you are. ADDRESS my point if you had any guts . But like typical jews and zionists, they will attack and gang up . Watch em aand learn
4q zion
The same people who danced in the streets when the twin towers came down? The same people that will happily kill women and children and civilians? The same people that will allow their own sons to strap bombs to themselves to do the same? You are amusing in your obtuse xenophobic hate of Jews. And palestinians are all over the inter-net, they shoot home porn, sext, but please continue to think other wise. Sex video sales, and sex toys sales in the middle east have never been higher, but tell yourself thats a lie. You are good at ignoring facts anyway. As far as those prisoners rights to start families...they should be castrated, in what sane world can you kill 21 people destroy the lives of countless families and still father children. He should have been fed a bullet. Then his wife could have found another husband. Although good luck with that among a population of arguably the most backwards gene pool on the face of the planet. And your point was Jews bad, Jews evil, well more of an assertion than a point......points have to have facts and logic.
If the Joooos are so evil why has Allah made them the masters of the palestinians anyway? Jus sayin....
Master of the Palestinians?
What a sick racist comment that PROVES you are a israeli supporter. Your opinion is worthless as you've proven yourself through your rantings that you are just another sick racist.
By the way, try to use paragpraphs you uneductad twit. Lumping everything into one paragraph makes your readers assume that you haven't had an english class your entire life. Probably wahacking off to american porno ya moron.
Your entire comment REEKS of racism. NOBODY is anybody's master in this world you sick fork. EVERY occupation of peoples in HISTORY has ended except the israelis occupying Palestine ? WHY because of the influence of jews in this country ya ignoarant prick. WHO is it that keeps Palestinians prisoners on hunger strikes ? israelis you moron.
If we stopped giving israel 110 MILLION dollars A DAY , they wouldn'r last five minutes on their own. The Arabs will march on jerusalem and end the inhuman and animalistic jewish domination. Palestine WILL be free and regardless of what @!$%# americans end up doing in cahoots with israel.
What goes around comes around and jews will AGAIN be slaves. I hope the Arabs are absolutely MERCILESS when the tables are turned. we can't protect the fool hearted jews forever ...
History will repeat itself and jews will be ppersecuted again. Maybe even to anihilation this time. The one thing I know is that the Palestinians will be in Palestine till the end of time ... This american judeo experiment will fail with israel's destruction from within. I can't wait !!!
Do not touch the glass. Do not approach the glass. You pass him nothing but soft paper. No pencils or pens. No staples or paper clips on his paper. Use the sliding food carrier. No exceptions. If he attempts to pass you anything, do not accept it. Do you understand me?
What a disgusting headline, who gives a big crap?
Just more babies on welfare, just think if this gets started over here.
We can call them Prison Babies. Obama will create a new special welfare program for them.
They aren't in this country, doofus.
Mazel tov!! ;)
inshallat tmootooo kullkum ....
Amazing to me what makes the Headlines on MSNBC/NBC. I guess anything to avoid discussion on the economy, the national debt, government spending and unemployment.
NBC.. wiping obama's butt since 2008. Lean forward.. LOL
And you licking it.
Agreed navyvet98 . Someone in israel must have called msnbc to put this story up as headline ONE today ...
It certainly helps take away from the prisoner X story where israelis are killing their own quietly now. I guess when you become a moron monster, you will turn on your own people eventually.
Something israel is doing just got swept under the rug today. What was it ????
Great just what the world needs more scumbag terrorist babies.
These babies will turn out to be a much better human that you ever will moron jew cosmo .... What the hell gives you the right to insult BABIES you sick porno loving whackoff ? Go back to jerking off. We don't need your sick stupid comments @!$%#.
Those are some ugly looking women. Are they sure that they aren't men in drag. If those are their wives, I can see why the men are thankful they have been locked up all these years
Three baggers, one for you, one for her, and one for the camel.
This is so funny. These women are having affairs and their stupid egomaniac husbands believe this stuff. Love it (Honey, she has your eyes, wink).
This is hilarious!!! These women are so fugly, I wouldn't stick my tool in them either. The only difference is my sperm also would not be given to these ugly hags.
Breeding more half educated idiot terrorists.
Terrorism isn't in the genes, it's in the culture that raises the child, and it could be any culture, depending on the living conditions of the people.
It's interesting to try to solve this problem. I will guess it is packaged in a way it can swallowed and passed later. It's kept at body temperature. It's been used for smuggling drugs, so why not for sperm? The biggest problems are getting the load to the woman smuggling it out, and getting the appropriate packaging to the inmate.
Why would we care about this?
What a heart warming story, the thought of little terrorist being born in the middle east just tugs at the heart strings..I thought we were making enough terrorist with drone strikes but this works too!
How cum the baby's all look like the warden.
Simple soloution Israel, life sentence and then castration. Seems fitting that a person who snuffs out the lives of so many not be allowed any of the pleasures of life. Why they still breathe amazes me.
I have visited friends in prisons with the same security protocol as this Israeli prison, what with the glass barrier and talking by phone, and the only way I see anybody passing any sperm to another is if the sperms could swim through a phone line. Maybe the prison should switch to cordless phones...
What an asinine tale to headline a NBC owned news website. Is it no wonder our nation is falling apart?, and the press is as culpable as any politician.
The jailers tried to shrink the Palestinian's population growth but failed.
It's either lie and say its smuggled sperm or have your head cut off for adultery. What would you choose?
The men could be wrongly imprisoned by idf thugs.
The woman could be inpregnated by prision guards under duress or threat of violence.
Far be it from us to interfere with your sex fantasies, Henrich.
He gets to jerk-off without snickering criticism. In fact, the act is cloaked as a patriotic strike against Israel.
She gets to screw other guys and have babies without getting her head cut off as per Islamic law.
If actually true, he gets to have children without having to touch that ugly bitch.....everybody wins.
Just keep swimming. What do you do you swim swim...
Just what we need is a nother musie in the world by a virgin.