Muslim schoolboy youngest COVID-19 victim in UK

LONDON

A 13-year-old Muslim schoolboy has become the youngest victim of the coronavirus outbreak in the U.K.

Ismail Mohamed Abdulwahab from Brixton, south London died at King’s College Hospital early Monday after testing positive for COVID-19 last Friday.

“Ismail started showing symptoms and had difficulties breathing and was admitted to King’s College Hospital. He was put on a ventilator and then put into an induced coma but sadly died yesterday morning,” his family said in a statement.

The family, who lost their father to cancer, said the young teenager had no underlying health conditions.

A GoFundMe page has been set up by Madinah College in London to cover his funeral expenses.

“It is with great sadness to announce that the younger brother of one of our teachers at Madinah College has sadly passed away this morning (Monday 30th March 2020) due to being infected with COVID-19,” the page read.

“Ismael was only 13 years old without any pre-existing health conditions and sadly he died without any family members close by due to the highly infectious nature of COVID-19,” it said.

“May Allah grant the family patience through this difficult time and make it a means of drawing closer to Him.”

More than 1,800 people have died in the U.K. from the coronavirus, 393 of them within the past 24 hours, according to official figures from health officials.

One third of all victims are thought to be from the capital, London.

After first appearing in Wuhan, China last December, the virus has spread to at least 179 countries and regions, according to U.S-based Johns Hopkins University.

Its data shows the confirmed number of cases worldwide have surpassed 850,000 with the death toll over 41,600 and more than 176,000 recoveries.