Baghdad hospital removes man's testicles without consent

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Ghazwan Abdulrazzaq, 58, had his testicles removed without his permission after he underwent what was supposed to be a hernia surgery.

Upon returning home from the hospital, his family realized that his testicles had been removed.

“I noticed that he was without testicles while I took him for a shower,” said Imad Abdulrazzaq, the brother and caretaker of Ghazwan.

“I called the physician's clinic immediately. I spoke with the physician and asked him whether he had done the surgery for his hernia issue or for testicle removal,” the brother said. 
 
The doctor responded that they had been removed due to "infections" that would endanger his life.

“It turned out that his testicles had moved upwards to his abdomen,” said Mustafa Salman, a physician at al-Zuhur hospital in Baghdad.

“The doctor signed for the surgery on behalf of the patient because he [Ghazwan] was psychologically unstable and that he was unable to sign or fingerprint,” explained Salman. 

The impoverished family had hoped that a committee formed by the Iraqi parliament would investigate the issue.

They have not yet heard back from the hospital or the physician, despite filing a lawsuit.

Translation by Zhelwan Zeyad Wali
Video editing by Sarkawt Mohammed