A young Gazan boy who was reported killed by the IDF in May has been found alive and safely extracted from the Gaza Strip with his mother, Fox News reported Thursday. The boy, eight-year-old Abdul Rahim Muhammad Hamdene—known as "Abboud"—was mistakenly referred to as "Amir" in earlier reports.
The U.S.-backed humanitarian organization Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which led the search, confirmed to Fox News that Abboud and his mother, Najlaa, were relocated to a secure location. In an interview conducted through a GHF translator prior to their extraction, Abboud told Fox News, “Outside the Gaza Strip is nice.” His mother said, “My son and I suffered a lot, but thank God. I just want him to live in peace. I am grateful to everyone who helped us.”
The confusion over the boy’s fate began with reports from Anthony Aguilar, a former U.S. Army officer and contractor for GHF, who told Fox News that he witnessed the boy being shot near a GHF aid distribution site on May 28. Aguilar, a retired Green Beret, said he saw Abboud holding food bags and thanked him with a kiss on the hand before the alleged shooting. However, Aguilar’s accounts of the location changed repeatedly, citing three different GHF distribution sites.
Following contradictions in Aguilar’s accounts, GHF terminated its contract with him in June and launched an internal investigation, Fox News reported. GHF representatives conducted on-the-ground interviews with local residents and used facial recognition and biometric software to verify Abboud’s identity. Their investigation led to Najlaa, who had been hiding her son for fear he would be harmed if discovered. Last month, she brought him to a secure distribution site in disguise, from which they were safely extracted alongside four other family members under threat from Hamas, Fox News reported.
Anthony Aguilar
(Video: BBC)
Footage obtained by Fox News shows Abboud playing and interacting with GHF personnel shortly before his extraction. “We are overjoyed and deeply relieved that Abboud is safe. This outcome was never guaranteed, and it was achieved thanks to the courage and persistence of our team," GHF Executive Chair Johnnie Moore told Fox News. GHF spokesperson Chapman Fay confirmed to Fox News that the boy and his mother remain in a secure location, declining to disclose their whereabouts.
Moore emphasized to Fox News the importance of verified reporting, saying, “Too many people were quick to spread unverified claims. When a child’s life is at stake, facts must matter more than headlines.”