Conjoined Iraqi twins separated after 11-hour operation in Saudi Arabia

Omar and Ali were separated successfully during the complex operation. Saudi Press Agency

Surgeons in Saudi Arabia have separated conjoined Iraqi twins during an 11-hour operation in Riyadh.

Ali and Omar were joined at the lower chest and abdomen, and shared a liver, bile duct and intestines.

The six-stage operation took place in Riyadh on Thursday, with Dr Abdullah Al Rabeeah leading a 27-member team of consultants, specialists, nurses and technical staff from the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre.

“This operation comes in implementation of the generous directives of the Saudi leadership,” said Dr Al Rabeeah, an adviser at the Royal Court and supervisor general of the centre.

Under the Saudi Conjoined Twins Programme, doctors in the kingdom have operated on 127 conjoined twins from 23 countries over the past 32 years.