An aspiring model, Resham Khan, and her 37-year-old cousin, Jameel Mukhtar, have been left with ‘life-changing’ injuries after they suffered an unprovoked acid attack in London, reported The Telegraph.
The two were out celebrating Khan’s 21st birthday and were inside their car at a traffic signal in Beckton, East London, when the attacker threw acid into their car.
“The pain was excruciating”, Khan wrote on her Twitter. “My cousin struggled to get us away. I saw my clothes burn away in front of me.”
The pain was so excruciating that it force them to strip off in middle of the road.
“He [Mukhtar] put his foot down as we were coming onto a dual carriage way but the pain took over and we crashed. We stripped off in the middle of the road, running around screaming and begging for water. We did this for 45 minutes. No ambulance came,” she added.
Finally, the pair was driven to the hospital by a passerby and was transferred to a specialist burns unit.
Explaining how the horrific incident has changed her life, Khan said, her old self is ‘gone forever’.
Khan, a business management student, had recently completed nine months’ worth of study in Cyprus, Turkey, and was looking to start her new job.
A fundraising page that has set up by fellow students to help the two said, “She feels as though her identity has been stolen from her.” It also stated, “The scars Resham and Jameel carry will last a lifetime.”
Khan suffered major damage to her left eye and was burned across her face body, needing a skin graft, the fundraiser also stated. Mukhtar is reportedly placed in an induced coma after suffering from severe burns across his head, face and body. It also damaged his eye and a skin graft was needed.
A Met Police spokesperson said: “Both victims have suffered burn injuries described as life-changing. It is believed the victims were inside a parked car when a man approached and threw a corrosive substance through the open window.”
She also expressed her disappointment and disbelief over the occurrence of such incidents and stated, “I’m devastated. I keep wondering if my life will ever be the same. Acid attacks in the UK are unheard of for me.”
In a message posted on her Facebook profile, Khan said, “It’s warmed my heart seeing so many people come together to support me and my family. Words can’t describe how you have all made me feel during such a low point in my life.”
Despite the harrowing incident, Khan is in high spirit and hope it doesn’t get in the way of her life. “I want to make sure that this doesn’t get in the way of my life any more than it has. I’ll get myself back into work, I’ll look good [and] I’ll graduate. And things will get better.”
