Medics in Kemerovo, Russia, said the girl, pictured, was now recovering well. Photo / East2west News
Medics have removed a huge "ball of hair" stuck in the stomach and bowel of a ten-year-old girl.
The child from Kemerovo region in Russia was rushed to hospital after suffering severe abdominal pains and dizziness.
Doctors said that she had "difficult" relations with classmates and chewed her hair when she became nervous.
The "grave" hair blockage - some 23 inches in length - extended from her stomach into her bowel, and was removed by surgeons.
Konstantin Surtsev, acting head of department of general surgery in Mariinsk, told Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper: 'This case has been the first in decades of work of our pediatric surgeons.
"Such a pathology, a foreign body made of hair, is actually rare and as a rule occurs in the stomach, but we haven't seen a case like this one before.
"Now the girl is in a satisfactory condition, her intestinal permeability has been restored, and she is recovering and will soon go home.
"We're asking parents to pay attention to the behaviour of children because this situation is caused by the neurotic state of the child."
Several Assad allies, including Maher and Mamlouk, sought refuge in Russia and Lebanon.