Two Georgian war wounded flown to Rambam for treatment

The two non-Jewish Georgians were brought here at the initiative of Rambam's orthopedic department, headed by Prof. Michael Sudri.

By JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH
Hospital generic 224.88 (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
Hospital generic 224.88
(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
Two young Georgians - a soldier and a civilian - who sustained shrapnel wounds in the recent war with Russia - arrived for treatment at Haifa's Rambam Hospital, Monday. Due to Israel's own wartime experiences, hospital staff have expertise in treating such complex shrapnel wounds. Guram Jarasiashvili, 25, was wounded on August, 7 when his unit encountered RPG fire while arriving in a town controlled by Russian forces. His comrade was killed next to him, and Jarasiashvili - who is due to be married in two months - was wounded in his legs. Georgian soldiers evacuated him from the area. "If my bride came to visit, I would marry here immediately in an Israeli church," he told doctors. Twenty-eight-year-old Irakli Matitaishvili was wounded the same day in the same town. He was captured by Russian soldiers, he said, and imprisoned for four or five hours. He said he was beaten and his head covered with a sack, before being shot in the leg. Matitaishvili, the father of a four-year-old boy, succeeded in escaping and crawled 400 meters before reaching the edge of the town, where he was evacuated. Asked what he knew about Israel, the young man said he heard of it but never thought he would end up here for medical treatment. He said he was "lucky to be chosen among thousands of war wounded to come for medical care in Israel." The two non-Jewish Georgians were brought here at the initiative of Rambam's orthopedic department, headed by Prof. Michael Sudri. The department's Dr. Alex Lerner, who has gained international recognition in his field for his training text on orthopedic injuries, suggested the humanitarian effort. Funding was provided by Israeli businessmen in Georgia. Members of the Israeli Georgian community paid visits to the wounded. Georgia's chief rabbi, Avraham Michaeliashvili, who is currently Israel, also visited the two, as did deputy mayor of Tirat Carmel, Morris Binyamin.