RIYADH — Salman and Abdullah — the conjoined Yemeni twins — underwent successful surgical separation on Thursday. The separation operation was carried out by a medical team led by Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, adviser to the Royal Court and supervisor general of King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSRelief). Each of the twins is now lying in a separate bed in the operating room at King Abdullah Specialist Hospital in Riyadh after undergoing a reconstruction surgery following the separation. The twins were conjoined in the abdomen and pelvis area. Speaking to Al-Ekhbariya channel, Al-Rabeeah said that Thursday's operation was the 55th successful surgical separation of conjoined twins carried out in Saudi Arabia, of which eight were from Yemen. "We are happy about this success," Dr. Al-Rabeeah said and thanked Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, and Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman for their support. Al-Rabeeah also thanked the accompanying medical team for their committed work. On his part, Youssef Al-Malihi, the twins' father, hugged Dr. Al-Rabeeah while thanking him for leading the medical team. "We trust Dr. Rabeeah and his team. These successes are nothing new to them and we truly appreciate their effort," he said. Dr. Al-Rabeeah said that the six-phase surgical operation was completed within 10 hours. The twins suffered from a critical condition and complications in various parts of the reproductive and urinary systems, in addition to deformities that required medical expertise to treat them. "The stages of anesthesia and endoscopy of the urinary and reproductive system were carried out smoothly. The fourth phase included separating the intestines from the adhesions of the urinary system," he said. Al-Rabeeah stated that the process of restoring the reproductive and urinary systems of the twins was one of the most important phases of the surgical procedure, in which the medical staff was be divided into two teams to deal with Salman and Abdullah separately. A number of orthopedists, urologists, pediatricians, and cosmetic physicians in addition to technical and nursing cadres, participated in the surgical separation of the twins.
