MADRID: A Palestinian boy who survived firebombing by Jewish extremists that killed his parents and baby brother was greeted by Real Madrid’s stars, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale, on Thursday.
The five-year-old Ahmed Dawabcheh who lost his family in the deadly bombing, has been recovering from his injuries over the past eight months.
Moved by images of the bandaged boy wearing a Real Madrid jersey, Palestinians campaigned for months on social media to persuade the team to meet Ahmed.
And his dream came true as he posed for photos and had a Real shirt christened with own name on the back signed by the club’s Galacticos, including three-time World Player of the Year Ronaldo and Welsh star Bale.
“The Real Madrid team met him and took photos with him and gave him a shirt and ball signed by the whole team,” Madrid said in a statement.
“Clearly moved, the boy ran around the facilities before witnessing his idols train.”
After meeting the players at Real’s training ground, Ahmed was then given a tour of the club’s Santiago Bernabeu stadium.