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Nagham Abu Samrah: Gaza karate champion dies after being injured in missile strike

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A Palestinian karate champion who was critically injured in a missile strike in Gaza last month has died in hospital.

Nagham Abu Samrah lost a leg in the attack on 17 December, which also killed her sister.

The 24-year-old had been in a coma ever since.

She died in al Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir al Balah. She was supposed to have been evacuated to Egypt for specialist treatment, but never received permission to cross the border.

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Her death comes as the devastating Israel-Hamas war marked its 100th day.

Speaking to Sky News last month from his daughter’s bedside, her father Marwan Abdullah Abu Samrah, said: “I am ruined. Nagham is my life and my spirit.”

He said she had been “a glimmer of hope” following the loss of her sister, in the same missile strike, and mother, who died of cancer a week before the war started in Gaza.

Mr Abu Samra added: “Nagham’s dream was to inspire generations of girls to play karate.

“The strike ruined all her dreams.

“The only dream left is for her dad who dreams about hearing her voice.”

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