Rebuilding His Life After the Turkish Synagogue Bombings

Following the heinous bombings that crippled Turkish communities in November 2003, JDC began providing emergency assistance to victims and their families. This is the story of Joshua:

Joshua is 20 years old. Five years ago, he joined a prestigious youth club volunteer guard unit for the Neve Shalom Synagogue in Istanbul, Turkey. The unit was formed after a 1986 terrorist attack in which 22 congregants of Neve Shalom were murdered. It provides exterior synagogue surveillance and communications. Two years ago, Joshua was elected head of the youth guard.

On November 15, 2003, at 9:30 a.m. Joshua and his cousin Danny were carrying out their volunteer guard duties on a narrow street directly in front of the synagogue. Joshua was standing across the street from the synagogue's front entrance, as Danny went inside briefly to make an inquiry. Alone now outside the synagogue, Joshua began walking up the street to check on people coming towards the synagogue from the next intersection, as he had been trained to do. At the same time, a large truck entered the street behind him, and drove towards the front of the synagogue.

As the truck pulled closer to the synagogue entrance, it exploded, tearing out the entrance of the synagogue, shattering its windows, and simultaneously destroying the façade of small businesses and private apartments across the street. Joshua was thrown to the ground by the force of the blast, and large pieces of concrete fell on top of him. Fortunately none struck his head, but they did hit his Kevlar protective vest, shattering it but saving his life. However, Joshua's legs were trapped under the rubble. First, he tried to free himself but could not. The concrete had ripped off part of his left foot, and his right foot was broken. Some people in a nearby teashop came to his rescue and helped pull him out. Since the ambulances had not yet arrived, the police, now on the scene, transported him without any medical assistance to the nearby Austrian Hospital. However, they were not equipped to handle trauma cases. Joshua was then transported to the Taksim First Aid Hospital, but again help could not be provided, because they also lacked the capabilities to handle such a severe medical situation. In addition, others injured from the synagogue blast had begun to arrive and the Taksim Hospital was overwhelmed.

By now, Joshua had lost a great deal of blood and was going into shock. An ambulance took him to the University Hospital on the far side of the city, where he entered emergency care, and was given a blood transfusion. Because they did not have microsurgery capabilities, the hospital doctors told Joshua that they were going to have to amputate his left foot. He pleaded with them not to do the surgery yet and to wait for his family to arrive. When his mother and father finally reached him, a decision was quickly made to transport Joshua to the German Hospital, which had the ability to deal with his situation. By the time he entered the German Hospital, three hours had passed since the bombing. Joshua immediately went into surgery for his foot, which lasted eleven hours! The doctors there managed to save his foot. Joshua's recovery from this first surgery lasted for two weeks.

Since November 15, Joshua has undergone three additional surgeries at a different hospital, to deal with other complications. He has lost one and a half toes. Joshua was finally discharged to his home after more than two months of hospitalization. He is beginning physical rehabilitation towards the goal of being able to walk again without assistance. In order to accomplish this, Joshua will, in a few months, need to travel to Israel and undergo extensive further rehabilitation in facilities there, which are much better equipped to respond to his needs. Moreover, Joshua is temporarily deaf in one ear, and needs more surgery to repair a damaged eardrum.

JDC is paying for all of Joshua's medical expenses, since he and his mother have no health insurance. So far, his medical care has cost $30,000. But forthcoming surgeries and extensive rehabilitation activities will require at least another $30,000 of support, if not more.

This incident interrupted his university studies, which he will return to after recovery. And, Joshua hopes that when he is completely well, he will return to guard duty in front of Neve Shalom Synagogue.