Nine-year-old Nurjahan Khatun was fast asleep beside her 13-year-old cousin at their home in Bangladesh. Suddenly, a man threw acid through the bedroom window.
The acid was meant for Nurjahan cousin, who rejected the older man’s marriage proposal. While both girls sustained horrible burns, it was Nurjahan who tremendously suffered. Her face was completely disfigured. She was left with a hole in her forehead and lost her left eye.
According to the Acid Survivors Foundation, acid attacks are often committed to get back at women who refuse sexual advances or marriage proposals. Most of these attacks are meant to mangle their bodies and humiliate them.
With the help of Healing the Children, Nurjahan was transferred to Florida in 2000 for life-saving medical treatment. Over the years, she’s had to endure more than 36 surgeries.
In 2004, Nurjahan returned to Bangladesh, but quickly learned she was no longer safe there. “I’m a scar-faced girl,” she said. “If you’re disfigured, you’re not treated well.” Because of her disfigured face and scars, Nurjahan was constantly threatened by men. Strangers would harass her on the street. She was reminded of her face all the time.
In the video below, Oprah tells Nurjahan’s harrowing story of survival, and viewers get a stunning update about her life today.
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