A Syrian boy receiving medical treatment in Israel gets to enjoy a taste of the Passover holiday. PHOTO: Ziv Medical Center.

A Syrian boy being treated for wounds he sustained in his home country’s civil war is spending this Passover receiving treatment in an Israeli hospital, and really enjoyed eating traditional matzah crackers, calling them a “delicacy”, Israel’s NRG reported on Tuesday.

Since the outbreak of war in Syria four years ago, Israel has opened its borders to Syrian civilians injured in the fighting to come to the Jewish state for medical treatment. Among them was this young boy, who was seriously injured in his lower extremities after being hit by a shell, almost seven months ago.

He underwent 17 unsuccessful operations in Syria, after which local doctors despaired from his chances of recovery, and told his mother that her son would not be able to walk again on his feet.

The mother did not accept their response, and, realizing that the medical treatment in Syria was inadequate to deal with her son’s injuries, she decided to bring the boy to Israel.

Two weeks ago, with the help of relatives, the boy was brought to the Israeli border, and was then evacuated for medical treatment at the Ziv Medical Center in the northern Israeli city of Safed.

The mother’s gamble succeeded, and after a complex procedure that lasted for several hours under the leadership of Professor Alexander Lerner – an internationally renowned expert on treating complex war injuries – the young boy was able to walk with the aid of a treadmill, and is likely to be able to walk independently in the future.

Being as the boy’s arrival in Israel for treatment coincided with the Passover holiday, he was able to enjoy another experience – eating matzah, according to NRG. The medical team handling his treatment told the boy and his mother about the meaning and history of the Passover holiday as well as the reason for eating matzah, offering them the traditional Passover bread to try.

The boy commented on how much he enjoyed the Israeli “delicacy” and that he would love to live in Israel.