'Evil dolls' game leaves 7-year-old severely burnt

What began as a playful attempt to recreate a trick she had seen online ended in tragedy for young Mouza Kaseb, on her seventh birthday.

- Haneen Dajani [e-mail]

NEERAJ MURALI/KHALEEJ TIMES Mouza is now back at school, walking and playing like other children and sharing her story.

(NEERAJ MURALI/KHALEEJ TIMES)

The Ras Al Khaimah child suffered severe burns from her chest down to her belly after her dress caught fire during an experiment with her cousins.

“They saw a video on social media of fire coming out of dolls’ eyes, so they brought a doll and wanted to light it on fire,” explained her mother, Um Mouza. “We wanted to play the ‘evil dolls’ game,” added Mouza enthusiastically.

“Mouza was wearing a kandoura mkhawara (traditional jalabiya with beads and artwork) which lights up quickly. When it caught fire, she ran outside instead of coming to us, and the midday sun made it worse,” explained her mother.

The accident happened on April 24 — the same day Mouza turned seven. “Everybody heard her scream. Her brother was driving in and saw her kandoura completely on fire, so he tore it open and rushed her to the hospital,” added Um Mouza.