Siamese twins undergo surgical separation
Sunday, 6th July 2003
Iranian twin sisters, Laleh and Ladan Bijani, 29, were the world's first adult Siamese twins to undergo surgical separation in Singapore. The twins, who were born conjoined at their heads, however did not survive the 52-hour marathon operation which started on 6 July, dying within hours of each other on 8 July 2003. News of the twins' deaths was received with shock, grief and sadness by Singaporeans and Iranians alike. On 10 July 2003 Ladan and Laleh's bodies were flown back to Iran. Thousands of mourners lined the 10 km streets leading to the twins' birthplace of Lohrasb, where they were finally laid to rest on 12 July 2003.