Saudi Arabia Faces Organ Shortage

Saudi Arabia has a shortage of donated organs, with more than 10,000 people on waiting lists, the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation says.

Saudi Arabia’s Arab News reported Sunday that many patients die while waiting for a transplant.

Rana Al-Sabbag, a coordinator at the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation, said the wishes of people who are willing to donate organs are frequently ignored by family members.

In Saudi Arabia, there were 526 brain-dead cases reported in 2006. Of those, 111 families were approached about organ harvesting. More than 60 percent of them declined to have their family member’s organs transplanted, the news service reported.

Saudi Arabia is not alone. A study in the British Medical Journal in 2006 showed that 41 percent of families blocked their family member’s wishes when they were alive to have their organs harvested.

From an Islamic perspective, a decision by the Council of Senior Ulema ruled that it is permitted in Islam to remove organs from dead people to save the lives of others.