Together For Ever

Two Iranian children look out behind photos of Laleh and Ladan outside the twins' house in Tehran on Tuesday.

SINGAPORE

Raffles Hospital regrets to announce that Bijani Twins Ladan and Laleh have both passed away during a surgery to separate them.

As Stage Two of the operation - the neurosurgical separation of conjoined brains - was coming to an end, the Twins lost a lot of blood and were in a critical situation. Doctors' attempts to stabilize them were in vain as their conditions continued to deteriorate. Despite the best efforts of the medical team, Ladan passed away at 2:30 pm. Laleh passed away shortly after, at 4:00 pm.

In their homeland, Iranians cried out in shock or wept as state television announced the deaths of the twins from a poor family who touched the world with their determination to lead separate lives - and to see each other face-to-face, rather than in a mirror.

"Is my beloved Ladan really not with us anymore?" Zari, an elder sister, told The Associated Press after the first death was reported in Iran. Seconds later, she fainted.

 Laden, the more talkative of the twins, had wanted to continue studying law and become a lawyer. Laleh, also a law school grad because she had little choice in the matter, had hoped to become a journalist.

Singaporean President S.R. Nathan on Tuesday extended condolence to President Mohammad Khatami on deaths of Laleh and Ladan Bijani, the twoIranian twin sisters who died of brain bleeding in Raffles hospital where a delicate surgery took place to separate them. In a letter to President Khatami, President Nathan said, "Throughout, Laleh and Ladan have been a source of inspiration to others around them." They knew that the operation was highly risky, yet they wanted to go through with it in order to fulfil their hope of being separated," he said in the letter.

Laleh and Ladan Bijani posted a letter of thanks on the Web site of Raffles Hospital, Singapore, before their operation began. Here is their message.

Dear Friends,

Thank you for all your good wishes and kind thoughts. We are touched by all the cards and email pouring in every day from people all over the world. Your kind gestures have brought much comfort to us as we anxiously wait for surgery next week. We have been praying every day for our operation. We are excited about it as we've waited 28 years for it!

Please pray for us, for Operation Hope to be successful.

Both of us have started on this journey together and we hope that the operation will finally bring us to the end of this difficult path and may we begin our new and wonderful lives as two separate persons.

May God bless you all

Laleh and Ladan Bijani

Taken From: http://www.irna.ir/en/tnews/030709231121.etn07.shtml

& http://www.raffleshospital.com/bijani/pressrelease080703-3.asp

& http://www.cnn.com/2003/HEALTH/07/08/twins.letter/index.html

& http://newsobserver.com/24hour/world/story/937369p-6543508c.html

   Muslim Women’s Commission preparing researches, other programs

Makkah

The secretary-general of the Muslim Women’s Commission, an affiliate body of the Makkah-based Muslim World League (MWL), Ms Bahija Baha Izzy, has said that the Commission is in the process of preparing scholarly researches and other well-studies programs that would seek to address international thought, using proper and rational arguments, based on authoritative Islamic references.

Taken From;

http://www.islamicnews.org/english/en_daily.html

High demand for Islamic financial products

LOCAL financial institutions have been urged to sell Islamic financial products in other markets in the region where demand for such product is high.

“We should not restrict ourselves to the domestic market. There is a huge demand for syariahcompliant products from countries around the region such as Indonesia,'' Second Finance Minister Datuk Jamaludin Mohd Jarjis said after the launch of MAA Mutual Bhd's newsyariah-based funds in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

He also said other countries might lack the capabilities to develop Islamic financial products, which provided the opportunity to Malaysian companies with the necessary expertise to establish themselves in these markets.

“We need to continue developing new Islamic products and tools, which appeal to international investors, so as to make Malaysia a leader in this area,'' he said.

Taken From: http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2003/7/9/business/5806140&sec=business