When a Jewish paediatric nurse called Ula Ostrowski-Zak clocked on for her shift in the children’s emergency room, she decided to step in.
"They asked me if I could help them find someone who would breastfeed the baby,” she told Yediot Ahronot.
“As a nursing mother, I didn't hesitate and suggested that I do it myself.
"His aunts were surprised that a Jew agreed to breastfeed him, but I told them that every mother would do it.”
During the course of her shift Ms Ostrowski-Zak nursed the baby five times. She later posted on the Facebook group La Leche League to find a replacement and was overwhelmed by the response.
“Within two hours I received more than 1,000 likes and responses from women who volunteered to help, women who were willing to travel even from Haifa to breastfeed him,” she said.
“In between, I continued to try to expose the child to the bottle but without success.”
Once discharged, the baby will be cared for at his grandparents’ home, also in Hebron.
Ms Ostrowski-Zak said. "His aunts embraced me and thanked me. They were really surprised and told me that no Jewish women would agree to nurse a Palestinian baby they did not know."
