חובש בכיר מד"א, זיאד דוויאת
חובש בכיר מד"א, זיאד דוויאתצילום: דוברות מד"א

The mother of Chaya Zisel Braun, who was killed in a terrorist attack last October, has given birth again – and the paramedic who helped her is the same one who took Chaya to the hospital after an Arab driver ran her down at a Jerusalem train station.

Ziyad Dawiat, a veteran Magend David Adom paramedic and ambulance driver, said that he had responded Sunday to a standard call for assistance – to help a woman who was giving birth at home to deliver her baby. Dawiat came to the house where help was needed, knocked on the door – and came face to face with Shmuel Braun, who immediately recognized Dawiat.

Gesticulating emotionally, Braun pointed to Dawiat's ambulance, repeating over and over the number 12, which is emblazoned on the ambulance. “He was very emotional and I didn't know why,” said Dawiat. “Meanwhile I could see a woman who was about to give birth. I went into the house and helped her, and after helping her to recover, the story came out.”

It turned out, according to the Brauns, that Dawiat had been on call on the night of October 22, 2014, when a baby girl – the Braun's daughter - was killed and eight people were injured Wednesday, after a terrorist hit them with his car outside the Givat Hatachmoshet (Ammunition Hill) Light Rail stop. The Arab driver, who died in hospital later that day after being shot by police, was a resident of the Shiloach/Silwan neighborhood and a member of Hamas. He had served in Israeli prison before for terrorism, according to police.

“After the parents, with great emotion, told me the story, I remembered who they were,” said Dawiat. 'Shmuel told me that whenever he sees the number 12, he remembers his daughter, and prays that he will be spared further suffering. I didn't know how to respond, to congratulate him on his new baby or commiserate with him for his loss.”

After successfully delivering the baby, Dawiat took mother and child to the hospital for an exam, to ensure that everything was okay. “I never dreamed that I would be able to close a circle in this manner with the Brauns,” he said. “But it's a small world. I intend to keep in touch with them.”

Shmuel Braun said that he and his wife “thank G-d for our new daughter, and we thank Ziyad and MDA staff for their help, and the fact that time and again they are in the right place at all times, to save lives and help those in need.”