New Delhi:
A two-year-old Nigerian boy was rescued after his family threw him out because they thought he was a witch. The harrowing pictures show the two-year-old emaciated Hope riddled with worms. He was forced to live off scraps of food thrown to him by passersby for eight months.
The boy was rescued by Anja Ringgren Loven, a Danish woman living in Africa who is the founder of African Children's Aid Education and Development Foundation. The Foundation helps neglected children disowned by their families after being labelled as witches. The horrendous practice is so common that sometimes the kids are being killed by the community.
When Loven found Hope, she bent down and fed him. She then wrapped the boy in a blanket and took him to the nearest hospital. Loven in Danish wrote on Facebook, “"Thousands of children are being accused of being witches and we've both seen torture of children, dead children and frightened children." She also made an appeal for donations to help the young boy.
Hope was taken to Loven’s medical centre he was given medical care to remove worms from his belly.
The strong little boy even plays with her son and is recovering well, she said. Within two days of asking medical fees, , she received $1 million in donations from around the world.