image copyrightJoe McNally/BBC
In a dark room in Cairo, a 13-year-old boy stares at the television screen, almost without blinking.
Real Madrid's star striker, Vinícius Júnior, appears on the screen, addressing the young man directly in Arabic: "Zaher, Mahaba" - Hello Zaher.
Zaher barely moves, his eyes wide open, fixed on his favorite soccer player.
We met Zaher a year ago in the ruins of Khartoum, the capital of Sudan. He was a small, quiet boy, scarred by war, one of millions of children whose lives have been turned upside down since the country's army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) began fighting in 2023.
According to UNICEF, the United Nations children's organization, more than 17 million children need humanitarian assistance in Sudan. UNICEF says it has been able to verify that at least 4,300 children have been killed or maimed, although it believes the real number is much higher.
Zaher lost both legs in a drone attack. With little access to specialized treatment, he dreamed of the day he could walk and play football again.
More than a year later, upon entering an apartment in the Egyptian capital, Zaher greets us with a huge hug. His mother, Habibah, also hugs us.
image copyrightVinícius Júnior
The boy we remembered as shy and withdrawn is almost unrecognizable. Now he is self-confident, daring and always smiling. And he stands tall with two new prosthetic legs.
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For almost a year, Cairo, Egypt, has been his home. Here he underwent surgery and months of rehabilitation, and now he can walk and kick a ball again.
When we met in 2025, he told us that his favorite footballer was Vinícius Júnior. We were able to let the Real Madrid star know, who said he wanted to send a personal video message of support. Meeting again in Cairo, we watched it together.
"I heard about your story. I know how difficult the last few months must have been for you," the Brazilian soccer player begins.
Vinícius has become a prominent voice fighting against racism in football and supporting the black community.
A smile appears on Zaher's face when the player tells him: "You are a hard-working black man. I really hope you make the most of your new prosthetics, that you play football again and that you find happiness. You deserve it."
Then an invitation arrives: "I would like to invite you to a Real Madrid game. We can spend the day together."
Overwhelmed, Zaher gets up and leaves the room. A few moments later, he returns wearing his new Vinícius Júnior shirt. He hopes that one day he can get a visa and accept the offer.
"Tell Vinícius that I love him very much," he says. "Your message has encouraged me a lot." His mother, Habibah, confesses that she feels that "the whole world is cheering for Zaher and wanting him to succeed."
A childhood torn apart by war
image copyrightLiam Weir/BBC
Zaher lost his legs in 2024, when he and his mother were trapped in Khartoum. Much of the city had become a battlefield, devastated by fighting between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces.
Food and necessities were in short supply, and the family did not have enough money to flee. To survive, they sold lentils on the street.
One morning, while Zaher and his mother were working side by side, a drone attack occurred.
"I looked at him and he was bleeding. There was blood everywhere," Habibah explained last year.
I was devastated. "He would wake up and ask me, 'Why did you let them amputate my legs?' I didn't know what to say."
At that time, Zaher moved in a wheelchair through the rubble of his neighborhood, passing burned-out cars, abandoned tanks and destroyed houses.
Before the war, Zaher loved football. After the drone attack, he could only play on his knees, a painful process that put him at risk of serious infection.
"I wish I could have prosthetic legs so I could play soccer with my friends like before," he said at the time.
That seemed unlikely to happen, but her story resonated far beyond Sudan, prompting an outpouring of support from people around the world.
Help from strangers
Among them was Dena Latif, a lawyer of Sudanese origin residing in the United Kingdom. After seeing the BBC report, he helped launch an online campaign that raised £45,000 (about $60,000) for his medical care.
Unable to receive the treatment he needed in Sudan, Zaher had to leave the country, which was not easy at all. Neither he nor his mother had a passport and their birth certificates had been destroyed during the war.
After months of planning, he and his mother were able to fly to Cairo, where an apartment had been prepared for them with food in the fridge and medical appointments arranged.
For the first time in years, his main concern was no longer simply how to survive.
Zaher underwent another surgery, followed by months of physical therapy and training to learn how to use his prosthetic legs. He also received psychological support to help him process the trauma he had suffered.
"He was shy, a little depressed, sad," says Dr. Bintelmuna Eltayeb, one of the doctors who treated him. "It was almost impossible to get a smile out of him, but now you can see him laughing. He has a lot of confidence in himself."
His transformation has been both psychological and physical, according to those close to him, and Dena comments that Zaher now faces life with a determination that has surprised them.
A chance to be a child again
As we spend time with Zaher, he laughs and jokes, recovering part of the childhood that the war has taken from him.
He really wants to try new things, from horseback riding to cycling, and wants to be an airplane pilot. He hasn't played football yet, but he's looking forward to getting back on the field with his friends in his hometown.
For Habibah, seeing her son regain his self-confidence has been a huge relief. However, he is worried about his future, his education and how he will be received in Sudan, a country still mired in civil war.
image copyrightNezar Abdullah/Anadolu via Getty Images
The state of emergency has been lifted in his hometown of Khartoum and the Sudanese army has regained control. However, throughout the capital, buildings have been destroyed, burned and looted.
Security concerns persist and 41% of Sudan's population suffers from high levels of food insecurity, according to a recent statement from the United States and 30 other Western countries. The group also warned of possible famine.
"I hope Zaher's story doesn't end with him," Dena says. The lawyer hopes her recovery will bring more attention and funds to the thousands of Sudanese children who have suffered life-changing injuries.
Zaher and his mother are already back in Khartoum. They hope that now that the city is more stable, he can receive check-ups and adjustments for his prosthetic legs there as he grows.
Despite the safety they found in Cairo, they miss their home, their family and their friends. And while Zaher has had the chance to recapture his childhood, millions of Sudanese children are still waiting for theirs.
*Additional reporting by Scarlett Barter and Abdelrahman Abutaleb.
This article was originally written in English and we used an artificial intelligence tool to translate it. A BBC journalist reviewed the text before publication. Learn more about how we use AI.
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