Abdulah Nakaš (November 27, 1944 – November 27, 2005) was chief surgeon at Sarajevo's State Hospital for over 30 years. He was a graduate of the

University of Sarajevo The University of Sarajevo (Bosnian language, Bosnian, Croatian language, Croatian and Serbian language, Serbian: ''Univerzitet u Sarajevu'' / Sveučilište u Sarajevu / Универзитет у Сарајеву) is a List of universities in Bo ...

Faculty of Medicine. Following the outbreak of the War in Bosnia and Hercegovina in May 1992, the state hospital (one of the Yugoslav national army's network of health facilities), cared for military personnel, dignitaries and local residents. During the

Siege of Sarajevo The siege of Sarajevo () was a prolonged military blockade of Sarajevo, the capital of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, during the ethnically charged Bosnian War. After it was initially besieged by Serbian forces of the Yugoslav People's Arm ...

, the hospital rapidly filled with casualties. The building itself was repeatedly shelled. Nakaš faced many difficult medical challenges. He would operate using temporary lighting, with little or no standard equipment,

anesthesia Anesthesia (American English) or anaesthesia (British English) is a state of controlled, temporary loss of sensation or awareness that is induced for medical or veterinary purposes. It may include some or all of analgesia (relief from or prev ...

analgesia Pain management is an aspect of medicine and health care involving relief of pain (pain relief, analgesia, pain control) in various dimensions, from acute and simple to chronic and challenging. Most physicians and other health professionals ...

. Nakaš is said to have worked 1500 consecutive days during the war and its aftermath. In the post-war period, Nakaš was instrumental in founding the Union of Health Workers. Nakaš also was elected a member of the parliament of the

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Serbo-Croatian: ''Federacija Bosne i Hercegovine'' / ''Федерација Босне и Херцеговине'') is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities composing Bo ...

and then the state for the

Party of Democratic Action The Party of Democratic Action (; abbr. SDA) is a Bosniak nationalist, conservative political party in Bosnia and Herzegovina. History The Party of Democratic Action (SDA) was founded on 26 May 1990 in Sarajevo, as a "party of Muslim cultural ...

Alija Izetbegović Alija Izetbegović (; 8 August 1925 – 19 October 2003) was a Bosnian politician, Islamic philosophy, Islamic philosopher and author, who in 1992 became the first Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, president of the Presidency ...

. He was considered to be a moderate, but was distressed by the breakup of Bosnia and Herzegovina following the dissolution of

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

. Sarajevo awarded him the Sixth of April Sarajevo Award for his service to the city and the nation. He died in 2005, having suffered from a ruptured abdominal

aneurysm An aneurysm is an outward :wikt:bulge, bulging, likened to a bubble or balloon, caused by a localized, abnormal, weak spot on a blood vessel wall. Aneurysms may be a result of a hereditary condition or an acquired disease. Aneurysms can also b ...

which was followed by haemorrhagic

pancreatitis Pancreatitis is a condition characterized by inflammation of the pancreas. The pancreas is a large organ behind the stomach that produces digestive enzymes and a number of hormone A hormone (from the Ancient Greek, Greek participle , "se ...

and

kidney failure Kidney failure, also known as renal failure or end-stage renal disease (ESRD), is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney fa ...

. His fame was such that his funeral was one of the largest ever held in the country, drawing thousands of mourners. He was survived by his wife and two children. He was buried in the Kovači Cemetery in Sarajevo, also known as the Martyrs' Memorial, dedicated to soldiers and civilian victims of the war. A hospital in Sarajevo was named for him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nakas, Abdulah 1944 births 2005 deaths People from Sarajevo University of Sarajevo alumni Bosnia and Herzegovina physicians People of the Bosnian War Party of Democratic Action politicians 20th-century Bosnia and Herzegovina people