From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, April 22, 2025
8-year-old seriously injured in Iranian missile attack released from hospital
Eight-year-old Amina Hassouna, who suffered a severe head injury when she was hit by shrapnel during last year’s Iranian ballistic missile attack, was discharged from rehabilitative care at Tel Hashomer earlier today.
The shrapnel from an intercepted ballistic missile fell directly on her family home in the unrecognized Bedouin village of al-Fura in the Negev region on April 14, 2024, during Iran’s first direct attack on Israel.
The Regional Council for the Unrecognized Bedouin Villages in the Negev announces that she has been released from Tel Hashomer’s rehabilitation department, though she still lacks full physical mobility.
Hassouna was hospitalized at Beersheba’s Soroka Medical Center with a severe and complex head injury following the attack, and then later transferred to Tel Hashomer after doctors were able to stabilize her condition through several neurosurgeries.
Now, over a year later, Amina’s father Mohammed says his daughter is alert and able to talk freely, with her memory still intact. But the incident caused the young girl long-lasting physical impairments. She can no longer move her left arm and has only limited movement in her left leg, allowing her to walk only slowly and with great effort.
She is now staying in an apartment in Arad, rented with the financial assistance of the National Insurance Institute, since her family’s home in al-Fura is not suited for her current state. Mohammed hopes to adapt the house to suit her condition, allowing her to reunite with him and her 13 other siblings.
Last May, Israeli authorities issued a demolition order on the family’s home while Amina was still hospitalized in serious condition. However, the order was soon rescinded after widespread outcry.
Like many unrecognized Bedouin villages in the area, al-Fura lacks bomb shelters that could have kept the girl safe during Iran’s missile barrage.
On top of their lack of shelters, unrecognized Bedouin villages are not protected by the Iron Dome system, which only intercepts rockets directed at urban areas registered on maps, but is not activated when the launch is aimed at “open areas.”
The Times of Israel Community.