Daoud Hanania
Encyclopedia
Daoud Anastas Hanania داود حنانيا (born 1934 in Jerusalem) is a Palestinian
heart surgeon. Hanania is a former Lieutenant General in the Jordanian Armed Forces, he is also currently a Senator in the Jordanian Parliament.
family. His father, Anastas Hanania
, was a lawyer
and politician
. The Hananias lived in West Jerusalem until 1948. In the early 1950s they permanently moved to Amman, Jordan, where Hanania's father came to hold several cabinet positions in the Jordanian government
, including Foreign Minister, Minister of Justice, Minister for Refugees and Minister of Finance. Anastas Hanania was also Jordan's Ambassador to Great Britain from 1960–1966 and a Senator from 1968 to 1989 in Jordan's Upper House of Parliament.
After completing his primary and secondary education
in Jerusalem at al-Ummah College and the College des Frères, Daoud Hanania joined the Jordanian army
at age 17. He was sent on a military scholarship
to study medicine
in England
in 1951. Hanania earned his M.B.B.S. medical degree from St. Mary's Hospital Medical School of the University of London
in 1957 (St. Mary's has since been incorporated into Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, also at the University of London).
Hanania subsequently became House Surgeon and Surgical Registrar at the Royal Northern Hospital in London from 1959-1961. He specialized in cardiovascular surgery and became a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England
in 1961 (F.R.C.S.), the American College of Surgeons
in 1971 (F.A.C.S.), the American College of Cardiology
in 1977 (F.A.C.C.), the International College of Angiology in 1979 (F.I.C.A.) and the Royal Society of Medicine in 1980. He also became an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
in 1980 (Hon. F.R.C.S.I.), the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow
in 1988 (Hon. F.R.C.S. Glasg) and the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
in 1989.
Hanania trained under Dr. Michael DeBakey and Dr. Denton Cooley in Houston, Texas in the late 1960s while he was a Fellow in Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at Baylor University College of Medicine.
On the administrative level, Hanania was the Director of the King Hussein Medical Center (KHMC) from 1973-1976. He then became Director of the Royal Medical Services of the Jordan Armed Forces from 1976-1988. Under his leadership, the Royal Medical Services experienced an intensive and steady program of expansion and improvement to become one of the premier institutions of medical care in the region. He was also Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery at KHMC from 1973–1992 and the Director General of the National Medical Institution from 1987-1989.
After retiring from active army duty with the military rank of Lt. General in 1989, Hanania served four terms as a Senator in Jordan's Upper House of Parliament from 1989–1997, 2007–2010, 2010-2011 and was re-appointed for a sixth term in November 2011. He has previously served as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, the Environment and Social Development and is currently a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
In addition, he is a member of the American-Jordanian Friendship Society, the British-Jordanian Friendship Society and the Polish-Jordanian Friendship Society.
Hanania was president of the Jordan Cardiac Society and the Arab Cardiac Society from 1988–1990 and was named Clinical Professor of Surgery at the Jordan University of Science and Technology
in 1989.
Hanania then played a leading role in the founding of the Arab Center for Heart and Special Surgery (now re-named the Arab Medical Center), an institution he directed from 1991-1999.
Today, Hanania has a private practice. He sees patients regularly at the new Hanania Center in Amman and performs cardiovascular surgery operations mostly at the Arab Medical Center and the Khalidi Medical Center and occasionally at the Islamic Hospital and the Amman Surgical Hospital.
He was appointed as a member of the Board of Trustees of the King Hussein Foundation in 1999 and elected President for Life of the Jordan Cardiothoracic Society in 2005. He is also on the Board of Trustees of al-Quds University
and a member of both the Denton A. Cooley Cardiovascular Society and the Michael E. DeBakey International Cardiovascular Society.
On November 23rd, 2011, he delivered the Annual Memorial Lecture for the 16th Pan-Arab and 8th Jordanian Orthopedic Associations Congress. The lecture, held in Amman, was attended by close to 700 medical professionals.
in 1984, the Légion d'honneur by François Mitterrand
also in 1984, the Nile Medal First Class of Sudan in 1986, the Insignia of the Commander (First Class) of the Royal Swedish Order by King Carl Gustaf in 1989 and the Medal of the Banner/Bright Star of Taiwan. He was also the first Arab physician to receive the Ben Qurrah Award of the Arab-American-Medical Association-Houston in 1998 for Excellence in Medicine.
He also holds the seven major state decorations in Jordan, the highest being the al-Nahda Medal of the First Order which he received from King Hussein in 1994. Hanania was also the first recipient of the Jordan State Recognition Prize for achievements in the fields of science and medicine in 2007.
Hanania was a lifelong friend of the late King Hussein and the late Prince Zeid Bin Shaker, whom he met while the three were students in England.
He enjoys reading and automobile racing. He is also a tennis
enthusiast, having served several terms as President of the Jordan Tennis Federation, during which time Jordan entered Davis Cup
competition for the first time.
(Vol. 3 No. 1, pp. 77–79, May 1968).
2. D. Hanania, “Injuries of the Chest”, Jordan Medical Journal
(Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 81–84, May 1968).
3. D. Hanania, Y. Goussous and S. Saheb, “Congenital Arterio-Venous Fistula of the Kidney”, Jordan Medical Journal (Vol. 6 No.1, pp. 1–5, May 1971).
4. T. Suheimat, D. Hanania, S. Karmi, “Renal Transplantation – Report of a Renal Transplant”, Jordan Medical Journal.
(Vol. 7 No. 2, pp. 145–159, November 1972).
5. A. Hanieh and D. Hanania, “The Extra-Cranial Cerebro-Vascular Disease: A Report of a Case Treated Surgically”, Jordan Medical Journal (Vol. 8 No. 1, pp. 77–88, May 1973).
6. D. Hanania, “The King Hussein Medical Center”, Jordan Medical Journal (Vol. 8 No. 2, pp. 206–210, November 1973).
7. B. Akasheh, S. Saleh, D. Hanania, G. Shubailat, and N. Atalla, “Traumatic Non-Penetrating Injury Causing Complete Transection of the Thoracic Aorta and Rupture of the Right Dome of the Diaphragm – A Case Report”, Jordan Medical Journal
(Vol. 9 No. 1, pp. 54–60, May 1974).
8. Y. Goussous, N. Harbi, H. Zureikat, A. Hijazi, S. Saleh, and D. Hanania, “Results of the First 158 Cases of Isolated Replacement of the Mitral and Aortic Valves in Jordan”, Cardio-Pulmonary Medicine: The Bulletin of the American College of Chest Physicians (Vol. 15 No. 4, pp. 20–23, October 1976).
9. A. Hiyari, D. Hanania and A. Hijazi, “Aortic Aneurysm in Behcet’s Disease”, Jordan Medical Journal (Vol. 12 No. 2, pp. 44–48, November, 1977).
10. N. Harbi, Y. Goussous, H. Zureikat, S. Saleh and D. Hanania, “Clinical Non-Invasive and Invasive Findings in 50 Patients with Mitral Valve Prolapse”. Non-Invasive Cardiovascular Diagnosis-Current Concepts (University Park Press, Baltimore, pp. 399–409, 1978).
11. D. Hanania, “ A Decade of Open Heart Surgery in Jordan”, Journal of the Irish College of Physicians and Surgeons (Vol. 10 No. 4, April 1981).
12. A. Hijazi, B. Akasheh and D. Hanania, “Aortic Rupture Following Non-Penetrating Trauma”, Jordan Medical Journal
(Vol. 16 No. 2, pp. 145–154, November 1982).
13. D. Hanania, Y. Goussous, S. Al-Jitawi, N. Abu-Aishah and H. Nesheiwat, “Cardiac Transplant First Operation in the Middle East: Case Report”, Arab Journal of Medicine (Vol. 5 No. 3, pp. 4–7, March 1986).
14. D. Hanania, S. Al-Jitawi, B. Akasheh, N. Abu-Aisha, “Cardiac Transplantation: The Initial Jordan Experience”, Saudi Heart Bulletin (Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 11–15, October 1989).
15. JP Veinot, D. Elstein, D. Hanania, A. Abrahamov, S. Srivatsa, A. Zimran. "Gaucher’s disease with valve calcification: Possible role of Gaucher cells, bone matrix proteins and integrins." Canadian Journal of Cardiology (1999; 15(2): 211-216).
16. D. Hanania and B. Akasheh, "Cardiac Surgery in Jordan, 'A Developing Country.'" In Surgery for All: Surgical Cost Consciousness in the Developing World (Ferozons Limited & MacMillan Publishers Ltd.)
17. S. Kabbani, M. Izzat, H. Jamil, B. Akasheh, D. Hanania, and H. Raffa. "Left Ventricular Volume Reduction Surgery in the Middle East." Asian Cardiovasc Thorac Ann (2003 11: 99-101).
Hanania says that even if a Palestinian state were established on the West Bank, he would remain in Amman. But at heart he remains an exile. On clear nights, from the heart institute on the edge of Amman, he can see the lights of Jerusalem just 40 miles away. A Yemeni Jewish family now lives in the house where Hanania grew up, but like most Palestinians he has almost total recall of his former home. It had 13 rooms, was built of rose-colored stone and had a large garden containing an orchard and a vegetable patch. "Our house was just outside the city, and in 1948 there were skirmishes nearby," he recalls. "Many Palestinians around us left and finally we seemed to be the only ones around, so we left too, thinking we would be back soon." Hanania's two young children were born in Amman, but like their father they have no doubt about their roots. "If you ask my young son where he is from," says the doctor, "he will tell you, 'From Jerusalem'."
"Where Do they Go From Here," Newsweek, 16 August, 1982.
Palestinian
Palestinian may refer to:* Something of, from, or related to Palestine, the Palestinian territories or the State of Palestine*A member of the Palestinian people, also rendered as Palestinian Arabs**Demographics of Palestine...
heart surgeon. Hanania is a former Lieutenant General in the Jordanian Armed Forces, he is also currently a Senator in the Jordanian Parliament.
Family Background and Education
Daoud Hanania was born into a Greek Orthodox Christian PalestinianPalestinian
Palestinian may refer to:* Something of, from, or related to Palestine, the Palestinian territories or the State of Palestine*A member of the Palestinian people, also rendered as Palestinian Arabs**Demographics of Palestine...
family. His father, Anastas Hanania
Anastas Hanania
Anastas Hanania was a Jordanian-Palestinian lawyer, judge, official and diplomat.Born in Jerusalem at around the turn of the 20th century, Hanania was educated at the Syrian Protestant College in Beirut and the Law College in Jerusalem...
, was a lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
. The Hananias lived in West Jerusalem until 1948. In the early 1950s they permanently moved to Amman, Jordan, where Hanania's father came to hold several cabinet positions in the Jordanian government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
, including Foreign Minister, Minister of Justice, Minister for Refugees and Minister of Finance. Anastas Hanania was also Jordan's Ambassador to Great Britain from 1960–1966 and a Senator from 1968 to 1989 in Jordan's Upper House of Parliament.
After completing his primary and secondary education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
in Jerusalem at al-Ummah College and the College des Frères, Daoud Hanania joined the Jordanian army
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
at age 17. He was sent on a military scholarship
Scholarship
A scholarship is an award of financial aid for a student to further education. Scholarships are awarded on various criteria usually reflecting the values and purposes of the donor or founder of the award.-Types:...
to study medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in 1951. Hanania earned his M.B.B.S. medical degree from St. Mary's Hospital Medical School of the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
in 1957 (St. Mary's has since been incorporated into Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, also at the University of London).
Hanania subsequently became House Surgeon and Surgical Registrar at the Royal Northern Hospital in London from 1959-1961. He specialized in cardiovascular surgery and became a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England
Royal College of Surgeons of England
The Royal College of Surgeons of England is an independent professional body and registered charity committed to promoting and advancing the highest standards of surgical care for patients, regulating surgery, including dentistry, in England and Wales...
in 1961 (F.R.C.S.), the American College of Surgeons
American College of Surgeons
The American College of Surgeons is an educational association of surgeons created in 1913 to improve the quality of care for the surgical patient by setting high standards for surgical education and practice.-Membership:...
in 1971 (F.A.C.S.), the American College of Cardiology
American College of Cardiology
The American College of Cardiology is a nonprofit medical association established in 1949 to advocate for quality cardiovascular care through education, research promotion, development and application of standards and guidelines, and to influence health care policy...
in 1977 (F.A.C.C.), the International College of Angiology in 1979 (F.I.C.A.) and the Royal Society of Medicine in 1980. He also became an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland , is a Dublin-based medical institution, situated on St. Stephen's Green. The college is one of the five Recognised Colleges of the National University of Ireland...
in 1980 (Hon. F.R.C.S.I.), the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow
The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, is an institute of physicians and surgeons in Glasgow, Scotland.Founded by Peter Lowe after receiving a royal charter by James VI in 1599, as the Glasgow Faculty, this institution originally existed as a regulatory authority to ensure that...
in 1988 (Hon. F.R.C.S. Glasg) and the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh is an organisation dedicated to the pursuit of excellence and advancement in surgical practice, through its interest in education, training and examinations, its liaison with external medical bodies and representation of the modern surgical workforce...
in 1989.
Hanania trained under Dr. Michael DeBakey and Dr. Denton Cooley in Houston, Texas in the late 1960s while he was a Fellow in Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at Baylor University College of Medicine.
Career
Daoud Hanania performed the first open-heart surgery procedure in Jordan in 1970, the first heart-valve replacement in the country in 1972 as well as the first kidney transplant in the Arab world in the same year and the first coronary artery bypass in Jordan in 1973 and in Iraq some years later. But his most important achievement came in 1985 after performing the first ever successful cardiac transplant in the Middle East and the Arab world at the King Hussein Medical Center in Amman, Jordan.On the administrative level, Hanania was the Director of the King Hussein Medical Center (KHMC) from 1973-1976. He then became Director of the Royal Medical Services of the Jordan Armed Forces from 1976-1988. Under his leadership, the Royal Medical Services experienced an intensive and steady program of expansion and improvement to become one of the premier institutions of medical care in the region. He was also Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery at KHMC from 1973–1992 and the Director General of the National Medical Institution from 1987-1989.
After retiring from active army duty with the military rank of Lt. General in 1989, Hanania served four terms as a Senator in Jordan's Upper House of Parliament from 1989–1997, 2007–2010, 2010-2011 and was re-appointed for a sixth term in November 2011. He has previously served as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, the Environment and Social Development and is currently a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
In addition, he is a member of the American-Jordanian Friendship Society, the British-Jordanian Friendship Society and the Polish-Jordanian Friendship Society.
Hanania was president of the Jordan Cardiac Society and the Arab Cardiac Society from 1988–1990 and was named Clinical Professor of Surgery at the Jordan University of Science and Technology
Jordan University of Science and Technology
The Jordan University of Science and Technology , often abbreviated JUST, is a comprehensive, state-supported university located on the outskirts of Irbid at Ar Ramtha region, in northern Jordan....
in 1989.
Hanania then played a leading role in the founding of the Arab Center for Heart and Special Surgery (now re-named the Arab Medical Center), an institution he directed from 1991-1999.
Today, Hanania has a private practice. He sees patients regularly at the new Hanania Center in Amman and performs cardiovascular surgery operations mostly at the Arab Medical Center and the Khalidi Medical Center and occasionally at the Islamic Hospital and the Amman Surgical Hospital.
He was appointed as a member of the Board of Trustees of the King Hussein Foundation in 1999 and elected President for Life of the Jordan Cardiothoracic Society in 2005. He is also on the Board of Trustees of al-Quds University
Al-Quds University
Al-Quds University is a Palestinian university with campuses in Jerusalem, Abu Dis, and al-Bireh. It was founded in 1984, but its official constitution was written in 1993 when Mohammed Nusseibeh, its first Chancellor and Chancellor of the College of Science and Technology, announced its...
and a member of both the Denton A. Cooley Cardiovascular Society and the Michael E. DeBakey International Cardiovascular Society.
On November 23rd, 2011, he delivered the Annual Memorial Lecture for the 16th Pan-Arab and 8th Jordanian Orthopedic Associations Congress. The lecture, held in Amman, was attended by close to 700 medical professionals.
Awards
Hanania was awarded an Honorary Knighthood of the British Empire (KBE Mil. Hon) by Queen Elizabeth IIElizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
in 1984, the Légion d'honneur by François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
also in 1984, the Nile Medal First Class of Sudan in 1986, the Insignia of the Commander (First Class) of the Royal Swedish Order by King Carl Gustaf in 1989 and the Medal of the Banner/Bright Star of Taiwan. He was also the first Arab physician to receive the Ben Qurrah Award of the Arab-American-Medical Association-Houston in 1998 for Excellence in Medicine.
He also holds the seven major state decorations in Jordan, the highest being the al-Nahda Medal of the First Order which he received from King Hussein in 1994. Hanania was also the first recipient of the Jordan State Recognition Prize for achievements in the fields of science and medicine in 2007.
Family, Friendships and Interests
Daoud Hanania married Nada Hanania (née Pio) in 1974. They have four children.Hanania was a lifelong friend of the late King Hussein and the late Prince Zeid Bin Shaker, whom he met while the three were students in England.
He enjoys reading and automobile racing. He is also a tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
enthusiast, having served several terms as President of the Jordan Tennis Federation, during which time Jordan entered Davis Cup
Davis Cup
The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation and is contested between teams of players from competing countries in a knock-out format. The competition began in 1900 as a challenge between Britain and the United States. By...
competition for the first time.
Select Publications
1. D. Hanania and A. Hijazi, “Vascular Injuries”, Jordan Medical Journal(Vol. 3 No. 1, pp. 77–79, May 1968).
2. D. Hanania, “Injuries of the Chest”, Jordan Medical Journal
(Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 81–84, May 1968).
3. D. Hanania, Y. Goussous and S. Saheb, “Congenital Arterio-Venous Fistula of the Kidney”, Jordan Medical Journal (Vol. 6 No.1, pp. 1–5, May 1971).
4. T. Suheimat, D. Hanania, S. Karmi, “Renal Transplantation – Report of a Renal Transplant”, Jordan Medical Journal.
(Vol. 7 No. 2, pp. 145–159, November 1972).
5. A. Hanieh and D. Hanania, “The Extra-Cranial Cerebro-Vascular Disease: A Report of a Case Treated Surgically”, Jordan Medical Journal (Vol. 8 No. 1, pp. 77–88, May 1973).
6. D. Hanania, “The King Hussein Medical Center”, Jordan Medical Journal (Vol. 8 No. 2, pp. 206–210, November 1973).
7. B. Akasheh, S. Saleh, D. Hanania, G. Shubailat, and N. Atalla, “Traumatic Non-Penetrating Injury Causing Complete Transection of the Thoracic Aorta and Rupture of the Right Dome of the Diaphragm – A Case Report”, Jordan Medical Journal
(Vol. 9 No. 1, pp. 54–60, May 1974).
8. Y. Goussous, N. Harbi, H. Zureikat, A. Hijazi, S. Saleh, and D. Hanania, “Results of the First 158 Cases of Isolated Replacement of the Mitral and Aortic Valves in Jordan”, Cardio-Pulmonary Medicine: The Bulletin of the American College of Chest Physicians (Vol. 15 No. 4, pp. 20–23, October 1976).
9. A. Hiyari, D. Hanania and A. Hijazi, “Aortic Aneurysm in Behcet’s Disease”, Jordan Medical Journal (Vol. 12 No. 2, pp. 44–48, November, 1977).
10. N. Harbi, Y. Goussous, H. Zureikat, S. Saleh and D. Hanania, “Clinical Non-Invasive and Invasive Findings in 50 Patients with Mitral Valve Prolapse”. Non-Invasive Cardiovascular Diagnosis-Current Concepts (University Park Press, Baltimore, pp. 399–409, 1978).
11. D. Hanania, “ A Decade of Open Heart Surgery in Jordan”, Journal of the Irish College of Physicians and Surgeons (Vol. 10 No. 4, April 1981).
12. A. Hijazi, B. Akasheh and D. Hanania, “Aortic Rupture Following Non-Penetrating Trauma”, Jordan Medical Journal
(Vol. 16 No. 2, pp. 145–154, November 1982).
13. D. Hanania, Y. Goussous, S. Al-Jitawi, N. Abu-Aishah and H. Nesheiwat, “Cardiac Transplant First Operation in the Middle East: Case Report”, Arab Journal of Medicine (Vol. 5 No. 3, pp. 4–7, March 1986).
14. D. Hanania, S. Al-Jitawi, B. Akasheh, N. Abu-Aisha, “Cardiac Transplantation: The Initial Jordan Experience”, Saudi Heart Bulletin (Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 11–15, October 1989).
15. JP Veinot, D. Elstein, D. Hanania, A. Abrahamov, S. Srivatsa, A. Zimran. "Gaucher’s disease with valve calcification: Possible role of Gaucher cells, bone matrix proteins and integrins." Canadian Journal of Cardiology (1999; 15(2): 211-216).
16. D. Hanania and B. Akasheh, "Cardiac Surgery in Jordan, 'A Developing Country.'" In Surgery for All: Surgical Cost Consciousness in the Developing World (Ferozons Limited & MacMillan Publishers Ltd.)
17. S. Kabbani, M. Izzat, H. Jamil, B. Akasheh, D. Hanania, and H. Raffa. "Left Ventricular Volume Reduction Surgery in the Middle East." Asian Cardiovasc Thorac Ann (2003 11: 99-101).
Newsweek Profile About Hanania (1982)
"Among Palestinians in Jordan, Dr. Daoud Hanania personifies Palestinian success. As director of medical services in the Jordanian armed forces and as chief of cardiovascular surgery at the King Hussein Medical Center, Hanania, 48, is one of the pre-eminent specialists in his field in the Middle East. He is one of the first in the region to perform open-heart surgery, a technique he learned under Dr. Michael E. DeBakey in Houston. He is distraught by the fighting in Beirut—partly because his sister lives there and refuses to move. "As a medical man, I am appalled by the suffering the Israelis are inflicting on an innocent population in Beirut," Hanania says. "I am a moderate, but seeing what the Israelis do makes people like me less moderate.Hanania says that even if a Palestinian state were established on the West Bank, he would remain in Amman. But at heart he remains an exile. On clear nights, from the heart institute on the edge of Amman, he can see the lights of Jerusalem just 40 miles away. A Yemeni Jewish family now lives in the house where Hanania grew up, but like most Palestinians he has almost total recall of his former home. It had 13 rooms, was built of rose-colored stone and had a large garden containing an orchard and a vegetable patch. "Our house was just outside the city, and in 1948 there were skirmishes nearby," he recalls. "Many Palestinians around us left and finally we seemed to be the only ones around, so we left too, thinking we would be back soon." Hanania's two young children were born in Amman, but like their father they have no doubt about their roots. "If you ask my young son where he is from," says the doctor, "he will tell you, 'From Jerusalem'."
"Where Do they Go From Here," Newsweek, 16 August, 1982.