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The family of an Australian student who was allegedly shot by Israeli forces near her university campus in the West Bank are demanding an independent investigation.
The 20-year-old was flown back to Melbourne with injuries so severe doctors say she could lose the sight in one eye.
Ranem Abu-Izneid thought she might never see her family again, but she returned to Australia.
“Nothing is certain. My life has been turned upside down. I still have a lot of operations to go through,” she said from her Royal Melbourne Hospital bed.
“I don’t know if I’ll ever be me again. If I’ll be able to study again and make my dreams come true.”
The Australian woman was in her third year of dentistry and went abroad to continue her studies.
She says she was in her student accommodation last Friday, near Al-Quads University in Abu Dis, a Palestinian village in the West Bank.
She claims that her roommate went to the window after hearing a commotion and was allegedly shot by an Israeli soldier.
The bullet pierced the window frame, narrowly missing both women.
Pictures capture the exact moment an Israeli missile hits a building in Beirut
But when it hit the upper corner of the room, it showered Abu-Izneid with shrapnel.
Her family say she underwent surgery in Jerusalem before enduring a painful journey to Jordan before eventually being flown to Melbourne.
“It’s terrible for our whole family, you know, we can’t believe everything,” said her mother, Rana Abu-Izneid.
The Foreign Office says it provided consular assistance, but in the end Ranman was placed on a commercial flight without a medical escort.
The Palestinian Australian New Zealand Medical Association is disappointed with the way the student was treated and is supporting her family, who are calling for an independent investigation into the alleged actions of the Israeli soldier.
“It’s so frustrating, so frustrating, I can’t imagine why we let this happen,” said doctor Mohammed Irrimeh of the association.
The Smart Traveler website says Australians should not travel to the West Bank, but this city near Jerusalem is considered a no-combat zone.
Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong’s office has been contacted for comment, along with the Israeli embassy in Australia and the Israel Defense Forces.
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