Ahmed Talat Barhoum

The beautiful child Ahmed Talat Barhoum, eight months old, was killed on November 6, 2023, along with his siblings. His father, Talat Barhoum, the Director of Reception and Public Relations at Yousef al-Najjar Hospital in western Rafah, recounted the tragedy: "Last night I was on my shift at the hospital, and I hadn't known anything about my family and my children for more than two weeks because of the pressure of work, the large number of wounded, and the internet and communications blackouts." While Barhoum was registering the wounded and providing data to journalists, he received dreadful news. "I was surprised when a journalist who knows me well, who had a satellite internet connection on his phone, told me that there had been a bombing in the area where my family's house is." Barhoum continued: "I went out immediately to ask my colleagues in the ambulance crews, and they told me that they had transported wounded and martyrs from an Israeli bombing in the White Housing area of the Tal al-Sultan neighborhood, west of Rafah." He noted that in that area, there was only his family's house and two others. "At that point, I was certain that something had happened to my wife and children." Barhoum could not contact anyone, nor could he leave his work. "Heavy minutes passed, feeling like an eternity. Then an ambulance arrived carrying my wife's brother's wife; she was injured and in critical condition. I couldn't get any information from her about my family." The anxiety grew. "My mind was certain of their fate, but my heart clung to the hope that they were alive." Then, "an ambulance driver told me that they had transported the bodies of a woman and four children to the Emirati Hospital, near the hospital where I work." He rushed there. "As soon as I entered the Emirati Hospital and saw my wife's niece, who works there, crying, I sat on the floor, stunned by the shock I had come hoping not to find." "I forced myself to stand up to find out exactly who from my family had passed away. I saw the bodies of my wife, Maysoun Abu Alwan, and my four children: Ahmed, 8 months; Layan, 14; Abdel-Rahman, 12; and Muhammad, 10. I only have two sons left, in high school." Barhoum concluded by saying that he moved the bodies of his wife and four children to the morgue at the hospital where he works. "I only got half a day off. I buried them and returned to my work on Tuesday evening. Despite my tragedy, there is no time for grief, because the work and saving the wounded need me and my colleagues. In the month since the war began, I only saw my family twice." This is what the father said about the last of the bunch: "The last of the bunch had special little movements that we were envied for. I used to say he was no ordinary child. And indeed, his life was very short. He was the first of my children to be like that, with his movements and his smile for everyone. He would play with everyone." And this is the eulogy from his uncle: "I tremble and weep, unable to speak or write about you, my dear second sister, Maysoun, and about your children: Layan, Abdel-Rahman, Muhammad, and Ahmed. For two weeks, we lived as if we were saying goodbye to each other. I am at a loss to describe what you said, as if you knew the date of your departure and your destiny, my dear sister. You have won the bargain, by God, you and your children. And I, for as long as I live, will honor the covenant and promise between us. Talat Barhoum is a brother to me, and Baraa and Ali are my sons."