Israeli genocide survivor studies AI in Pakistan, dreams of amputee football team
After losing his leg to shrapnel, 20-year-old Al-Hassan Mohammad Naser hopes to walk again, build career in technology and help other amputees play football
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (MNTV) — Football was more than a sport for Al-Hassan Mohammad Naser. It was a passion and a defining part of his life before Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza changed everything.
Now, thousands of kilometers from his home in Beit Hanoun, the 20-year-old Palestinian is studying artificial intelligence in Pakistan after losing his leg to shrapnel, Arab News Pakistan reported.
Naser hopes to walk again, build a career in technology and establish a football team for amputees in Pakistan or Gaza.
“Even though I am an amputee, I still love this sport, love football, and love to play it,” he told Independent Urdu.
“Even though I may have lost my favorite sport, I hope to form a football team for amputees, whether here in Pakistan or, if Allah grants us life and we stay alive, in Palestine, in Gaza.”
A life-changing injury
When the war began, Naser and his family fled Beit Hanoun in northeastern Gaza for the central part of the territory. They eventually took refuge in a school crowded with displaced families.
About 22 members of his extended family were sheltering in one classroom when a strike occurred roughly a kilometer away. Shrapnel pierced a classroom window and struck him.
“I was sitting among my family; my mother was beside me, my father was beside me, and my brothers were beside me,” he recalled.
“Suddenly, without prior warning, I felt like the world was spinning around me.”
Naser said he feared he was dying. He survived after receiving about 22 units of blood.
“Alhamdulilah, God gave us life anew … and here we are,” he said.
The injury led to the amputation of his leg at the hip joint.
Naser was evacuated to Egypt for treatment before securing an academic scholarship to study in Pakistan. He is now enrolled in an artificial intelligence program at Riphah International University.
His family remains in Gaza, where repeated displacement has forced them to live in a tent in Deir Al-Balah, he said.
“Gaza was my country, my home,” Naser said. “I miss my family a lot.”
Determined to move forward
The amputation has made everyday tasks, including carrying objects and preparing food, more difficult. But Naser said accepting his condition helped him regain confidence and continue pursuing his goals.
“I accepted it, and this contentment gave me the confidence that allowed me to continue my life,” he said.
His experience has also shaped his view of disability.
“For me, a disability is the disability of the mind, not the body,” he said, adding that physical limitations should not prevent people from pursuing their ambitions.
“Even if both my legs were gone, my life wouldn’t stop. I have goals and ambitions. I must achieve these goals and ambitions.”
Finding support in Pakistan
Naser said his roommates at a student hostel have helped him adjust to life in Pakistan, assisting with everyday tasks.
“The guys don’t fall short at all; they help me with everything,” he said. “They are great guys, reliable and true brothers.”
He hopes to obtain a suitable prosthetic limb, secure residency and build a stable future in Pakistan.
“If Pakistan could provide me with a prosthetic limb, that would be very wonderful,” he said. “I hope to walk again like anyone else.”
As he pursues his studies, Naser is also holding on to his dream of returning to football and helping other amputees play the sport he loves.
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