Okaz/Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — Two Saudi women on scholarship in the US, who were declared brain-dead by hospitals there, were airlifted to the Kingdom for medical care in the midst of their families, relatives and friends. Basma Al-Enizi and Ibtihal Abu Jabal arrived onboard a medical evacuation aircraft ordered by Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, second deputy premier and minister of defense. The aircraft first landed in Portland, Oregon, to carry Basma, then it flew to Indiana to take Ibtihal and her husband Abu Bakr Taher Talibi. The two women are both in their 20s. Basma suffered brain damage after a severe asthma attack while Ibtihal was suffering from acute anaemia and had a stroke which caused her to go into a coma. Basma was accompanied by her husband Hani Al-Enizi and her two children, Talal and Orance. She was taken by an ambulance to King Khaled Hospital in Hail where a special room was prepared for her. From Hail, the plane left for Jeddah with Ibtihal and her husband where it landed late Saturday at King Abdulaziz International Airport and was received by a medical team from the Department of Health Affairs. The patient was taken by an ambulance to the International Extended Care Center to be treated at the expense of the Health Ministry. En-route from the US, the aircraft landed in London for refueling before it continued its journey to Hail in the north. The families of the brain-dead young women thanked the Deputy Crown Prince for his noble gesture. Basma's mother Thuqla Khalf Al-Enizi said that despite his numerous preoccupations, Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad has stood by citizens. "Prince Muhammad has brought us together. We have hope that Basma would recover now that she is among her family and relatives," she added.
