Reuters AlertNet Lite - Saudi,Turk boys to swap homes 4 years after mix-up

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Saudi,Turk boys to swap homes 4 years after mix-up

07 Nov 2007 11:52:58 GMT
Source: Reuters

RIYADH, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Two boys, one Saudi and one Turkish, will swap homes four years after a hospital gave them to the wrong parents, a Saudi newspaper said on Wednesday.

"Mistakes are always possible, but we will try to find who was responsible and hold them to account so it doesn't happen again," Prince Mishaal bin Saud, governor of Najran in the far south of the kingdom, said in comments in al-Watan newspaper.

Saudi health authorities had been reluctant to accept the Turkish father's claim that his son Yacoub was not his, but DNA tests carried out this week proved him right.

Published pictures show a distinctly Saudi-looking Yacoub.

The father of the other child, Saudi national Mohammed al-Monjem, had no inkling that pale-skinned Ali was not his. He will press a 50 million riyal ($13 million) compensation claim against the health ministry, al-Watan said. (Reporting by Andrew Hammond; Editing by Inal Ersan and Oliver Bullough)

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Last updated:Wed Nov 7 11:52:10 2007