Woman delivers twin baby girls who share a skull (photos)

a family in Indonesia. Hopefully, they may soon be separated in a life-changing operation.

The sisters, Nadira Alifa Putri and Nadiba Aisyah Putri, have been conjoined since their birth four months ago, sharing a skull but not a brain.

They were born on January 21 as triplets, delivered by Caesarean section at the Tanjungpinang Regional General Hospital in Indonesia, but their other sister is separate to them. See the three triplets after the cut.

Parents Siti Nuryaningsih and Juarnes Prana Dinata, both 30, are now waiting for a landmark operation which will separate their daughters, allowing them to lead a normal life.

DailyMail reports Mr Dinata said: 

'The doctors were shocked at birth when they realised it was a triplet and a conjoined twin as well. 'I am glad that all the babies are healthy but I am really looking forward to their separation.

'It is really difficult for me and my wife to see them like that.'

Their mother says they may share a skull, but they have completely separate characters. 

She said:

'Both of them have completely different personalities. They are too young to make decisions but they know what they want to do in that moment. 

So we think attempting a separation surgery is a step that needs to be taken. When one sleeps the other one wants to play so their sense of doing things is really messed up. We are really looking forward to their separation.'

The twins have been referred to the Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital in Jakarta. But doctors at the hospital have asked the parents to wait until the babies gain weight to perform the the operation to split them up.

But Mr Dinata is desperate for his girls to be separated sooner. He said:  

'The results were not satisfactory because the doctors in the Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital will not be able to perform a separation surgery until they reach the minimal weight of 10 kilograms [22lb].

'We are hoping that the babies will gain weight in the next 6-8 months.'

Conjoined twins occur about once in every 200,000 live births and their survival is 'anything but assured' according to the University of Maryland Medical Centre.