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28 March 2024

Saudi child 'injected' with Aids virus demands SR50m

Riham Al Hikmi

Published
By Staff

The family is a 12-year-old Saudi girl who was given contaminated blood by mistake at a local hospital is demanding SR50 million (Dh49.5 million) damages although doctors have said she has not been infected with the deadly Aids disease.

A Saudi court in the capital Riyadh has just started hearing the case of Riham Al Hikmi at the request of her father after she was mistakenly given contaminated blood by a technician at a government hospital in the southern province of Jazan.

“The family is demanding SR50 million. This sum is much below the compensation of around 160 million euros normally given in similar cases worldwide,” her lawyer Ibrahim Hikmi said, quoted by Ajel Arabic language daily.

“In some other countries, the minister of health is usually sacked in such cases. The sum demanded by Riham’s family is the minimum we are seeking in this case.”

In March, Riham hit headlines in the oil-rich Gulf Kingdom after she was reported to have been infected with the killer disease by receiving contaminated blood.

Jazan Hospital admitted that it was an error by one of its laboratory technicians and apologised to the girl’s family. But the Ministry of Health decided to open an investigation into the case following media furore.

The hospital said the technician made a mistake when he transferred blood to the girl from a donor infected with the Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome (Aids).

The incident triggered a wave of public protests through social networks and many of them called for immediate action against that hospital.
A few weeks later, doctors examining Riham said she had not been infected with Aids but added that she has to remain under continuous medical supervision at present.

“We have conducted three tests, the last of which was at Mayo clinic in the United States, and all of them showed Riham is not infected with the virus,” said Dr Sami Al Hajjar, head of the medical team supervising Riham’s case.

“This is probably because of the instant reaction by doctors to the reports that Riham was given contaminated blood. I believe the quick response to her case prevented the transmission of the virus, but we have to keep her at hospital under our supervision for a while to make sure she is fully Aids-free after we stop the medication.”