Palestinian prisoners are determined to survive despite their deplorable conditions

By Sami Ekila, IOL  Palestine Correspondent

TULKARM, Aug 3 (IslamOnline.net) – It would not make sense by any stretch of the imagination that a prisoner behind bars could have children without consummation. But Palestinian prisoners have made the unbelievable come true. 

Ikhlas Abbas, a 32-year-old lady from the West Bank city of Tulkarm , is the first ever Palestinian woman who took the initiative in launching the so-called "tele-pregnancy" or in medically speaking "in vitro fertilization (IVF)."

Mrs. Abbas has had her eggs (oocytes) fertilized with sperm from her prisoner husband, Abbas al-Sayed, in the laboratory.

The fertilized eggs (zygotes) would then be transferred into the woman's uterus a few days later.

"When my husband (the leader of Ezzudin al-Qassam Brigades in the West Bank ) knew that he was wanted by Israel , he decided to put a specimen of his sperm in a medical center, so that I can use it in case he was sentenced to life imprisonment," she said.

"After being arrested on May 8 by Israeli troops, he raised the idea among his prison inmates, who were very much enthusiastic about it, particularly that they cannot have children as well," Mrs. Abbas said.

She said that her husband urged her to go the medical center to get her eggs fertilized, noting that at the very beginning she rebuffed the idea, fearing that her society might think ill of her if she got pregnant.

"My husband always said: 'It is one of my enshrined rights to have babies to carry my name,'" she added.

Mrs. Abbas said that at the end of the day she got convinced of the idea, pointing out that she had her eggs fertilized in June, but it proved unsuccessful. However, she has undergone another IVF and still awaits the results.

She continued: "My husband was over the moon when he knew that I underwent the operation. He and the prison inmates yelled loudly and jubilantly Allahu Akbar (God is Greater)."

"I sacrificed a lot to stand behind my husband in his distress, and no matter what people say now for the sake of my husband," she said.

Idea Circulate

Mrs. Abbas said that she worked on circulating the idea among the wives of Palestinian prisoners, asserting that it appealed to them and she encouraged four wives to go through the experience.

"It is not the end of the life when a husband is imprisoned…A faithful wife should always obey her husband and make him happy," she added.

For her part, Maissoun al-Agori, the wife of Magdi al-Agori who was sentenced to life imprisonment by Israel , said that she first rejected the idea, given that she is living in a conservative town that has its own traditions, but her husband managed to persuade her.

"Two months ago, my husband sent a specimen of his sperm to me," she said, adding that she would undergo an IVF in a coupe of days.

Agori, a father of two girls, was arrested by Israeli troops in October 1989.  

Lawful

Mufti of Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem ) Sheikh Ekremeh Sabri told IslamOnline.net that the IVF is lawful in Islam provided that the semen comes from the husband and the eggs are taken from the wife.

But Sheikh Ekremeh stressed that the couple should be highly cautious and resort to trustworthy medical centers and lawyers.

He also said that IVFs should be also made public via newspapers to stave off rumors, adding that the couple should also get a credited certificate from the medical center with the presence of two witnesses from the husband's next of kin.

Medically speaking, Dr. Bahaa al-Ghilani, the director of the Gaza-based Basma Center for IVFs, said that there is a fifty-fifty chance that the artificial fertilization will succeed.

"It should be carried out by a specialist and needs special medical techniques and equipment," he said, adding an IVF costs up to $1200.