New Delhi: A premature baby rescued by Gaza doctors from her dead mother's womb last week has died due to complications and power cuts affecting the intensive care unit where she was treated.
The 6-day-old baby Shayma was rescued by doctors on Saturday, as her 23-year-old mother, Shayma al-Sheikh Qanan, was killed after an airstrike had hit her house in the central Gaza town of Deir al-Balah.
The story of the baby girl born in the rubble profoundly touched people worldwide as well those in Gaza.
Dr Fadi Al Khorty, who helped deliver baby Shimah, had called the girl a symbol of hope for Palestinians facing daily bombardment.
Shimah's grandmother Mirfat Qanan said at the time of the birth that it was a tragedy to lose her daughter, but there was joy in becoming a grandmother.
‘My daughter Shimah is dead, but I now have a new daughter,' she said.
The latest figures show since the 8 July invasion, more than 1,300 Palestinians – a quarter of whom were children – and 53 Israeli soldiers have been killed in the conflict.
The untimely death of Shimah is a stark reminder of the horror of the conflict.
‘I think this is the saddest thing I've seen in three weeks of senseless fighting,' wrote one commentator on Twitter.
