“Let your son die.” Ghazi recounts the details of the occupation’s killing of his child in his arms policy

A new crime added to the record of targeting civilians and children in the Gaza Strip, in which the 3-year-old child, Rayan Abu Al-Ajen, became a victim. The child was in his father’s arms, returning from a family visit, when the occupation targeted them, killing the child and wounding the father in the leg.

On the recovery bed in Al-Aqsa Hospital, the injured father, Bahaa El-Din Abu Al-Ajen, spoke to Al-Jazeera sadly, recounting the details of the accident, explaining that he was walking with his son on a road about 200 meters west of the Yellow Line, and the area was devoid of any military activity.

However, Abu Ajin and his son were surprised by the Israeli occupation soldiers right in front of them. He says: “When I saw them, my relative sat on the ground, while my son Rayan started crying, so I hugged him and tried to get away, but the soldiers opened fire on us.”

He continued: “They fired two bullets at me, but they did not hit me. I stopped and raised my voice so that they would not shoot again, but they fired the third bullet directly at my son Rayan’s head while he was in my lap, then they hit me in my leg.”

Immediately, the father quickly called an ambulance via mobile phone, but the soldiers confiscated the phone and turned it off.

Abu Ajin bitterly recounts the harsh conversation that took place between them, saying: “I was screaming and telling them that the child is dying, have mercy on him, what is the child’s fault? The soldier responded coldly: (What do you want about the boy? The boy is dying, forget about him), then they snatched the body of little Rayan from my embrace and wrapped him in a piece of (nylon) in front of my eyes.”

He pointed out that his son continued to bleed in his arms for hours while he was detained in the place, adding that he repeatedly requested treatment for him and his child, but the soldiers continued to abuse him psychologically, threatening to amputate his foot, which he could no longer hold – according to his description – except for “two legs”.

He confirmed that the soldiers transferred him and his son to a military site near the area, explaining that his leg injury was severe. He said: “I was seeking treatment for me and my son, and I asked them why I was being detained, and one of the soldiers accused me of belonging to the Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas, and I answered him that I did not belong to any organization,” noting that he remained detained for long hours without receiving the necessary medical care.

The chapters of the tragedy did not end there. At approximately 11 p.m., the occupation soldiers threw the injured father into an empty, dark area near the “Kissufim” military site, and left him alone under the surveillance of the “Quadcopter” aircraft. He was later surprised to find that they had thrown the body of his child Rayan next to him in that open space, while it was still covered with the piece of nylon in which he had been wrapped.

According to doctors supervising the father’s treatment, his health condition is still critical, and he needs advanced operations that include bone transplantation and repair of arteries, veins, and blood vessels in his right foot.

The grieving father concluded his speech with an appeal to the world to help him receive treatment, stressing that since that moment when Rayyan died in his arms, sleep has not reached his eyes.