Bangladeshi mom want twins to stay in Australia

DHAKA, Bangladesh: The mother who gave up conjoined Bangladeshi newborn twins for adoption said Saturday she is overjoyed the toddlers have been successfully separated and wants them to grow up in Australia.

In this August 2009, image provided by the Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne, 2-year-old Bangladeshi orphan, Trishna, is seen at the Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne in Australia.

"My babies are alive and doing well. It's the best news I've ever got in my life," a tearful Lovely Mollick told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from her home in Khulna district, 85 miles (137 kilometers) southwest of Dhaka.

The twins, who turn 3 next month, had been joined at the top of their heads and shared brain tissue and blood vessels. They were separated Tuesday after 25 hours of delicate surgery in a hospital in Melbourne, Australia's second largest city, and then underwent an additional six hours of reconstructive work.

The charity that brought Trishna and Krishna to Australia two years ago for the surgery, Children First Foundation, will continue to support the twins as they undergo further medical treatment in Australia for at least the next two years, chief executive Margaret Smith said Friday.

Trishna awoke from a medically induced coma Thursday. Officials announced Saturday that Krishna woke late Friday and was progressing well.

Their 23-year-old mother said she made the heartbreaking decision to give up her daughters to a Dhaka orphanage after giving birth by cesarean section because she could not properly care for their special needs.