“I want to see Baba”: The desperate search for missing Gaza journalist Ahmed al-Agha
On the morning of 4 March 2024, the Hamad Towers in Khan Younis ceased to be a residential complex and became a trap. As Israeli forces launched a military operation in the northwest of the city, Ahmed al-Agha, a Palestinian journalist, was inside his apartment. Then, the line went dead. Since that moment, Agha’s family
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World Press Freedom Day: 939 Days of Uncertainty for Disappeared Journalists Nidal Al-Waheidi and Haitham Abdel-Wahed”
The Palestinian Center for the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared (PCMFD) expresses its profound concern over the continued ambiguity surrounding the fate of journalists Nidal Al-Waheidi and Haitham Abdel-Wahed. All contact with the two journalists was lost on October 7, 2023, while they were performing their professional duties near the Beit Hanoun/Erez crossing in the northern
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Lost in the void: The disappearance of a Gaza youth with Down syndrome
GAZA CITY – In the al-Maqusi Towers area of northwestern Gaza City, Ahmed al-Madhoun was more than just a neighbour. To the entire district, the 21-year-old was described as “a soul walking on two feet.” Ahmed, who lived with Down syndrome, possessed a brand of innocence that radiated through a distinctive smile—one that neighbors say
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On Palestinian Children’s Day: More than 2,900 Missing Children in the Gaza Strip due to the Israeli War of Genocide
GAZA – The Palestinian Center for the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared (PCMFD) marks Palestinian Children’s Day, observed annually on April 5th, as a somber reminder of the thousands of children buried under the rubble of buildings decimated by Israeli airstrikes or lost in the chaos of war. The Center warns that this anniversary arrives amidst
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Fact Sheet: Determinants and Obstacles to Documenting the Number of Missing and Enforced Disappeared Persons in Gaza
Introduction This paper outlines the field, logistical, and legal factors preventing the issuance of accurate and comprehensive statistics regarding the numbers of missing and forcibly disappeared persons in the Gaza Strip. It addresses their demographic distribution (children/women) and the locations of their disappearance. These factors constitute structural barriers facing documentation teams and legal units. 1-Geographical
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“She Went to Bring Him Back… and Vanished With Him”: A Gaza Mother Becomes the Missing in a Search for Her Son
While countries across the Middle East celebrate Mother’s Day, some families in the Gaza Strip are enduring the day in pain and heartbreak. What is meant to be an occasion to honor and gather around mothers has instead turned into a day where children search for their mothers’ names on lists of the missing, living
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Case Documentation: The Disappearance of Mohammed Rashid Shaat in The Old town ,Gaza City Center
Within the framework of its ongoing efforts to document cases of missing and forcibly disappeared persons in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Center for Missing and Forcibly Disappeared Persons highlights the case of Mohammed Rashid Shaat, an 18-year-old student from the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood in Gaza City, whose fate remains unknown. Incident Details According to
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On International Women’s Day: 3,200 women remain missing in Gaza amid ongoing genocide
Gaza – The Palestinian Center for Missing and Forcibly Disappeared Persons stated that International Women’s Day, observed on March 8, serves as a grim reminder of the escalating tragedy of thousands of missing women in the Gaza Strip. This crisis continues to worsen 28 months into the genocidal war waged by the Israeli military, compounded
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“They Were My Sight and My Support”: A Gaza Mother’s Ordeal Searching for Two Sons After the Killing of a Third
“Do you have any news about my sons? I am still waiting for a call to tell me anything new about their fate.” With these words, heavy with tears, 42-year-old Anhar Hajjaj tells a story that encapsulates the tragedy of thousands of mothers in the Gaza Strip—where the war has not only claimed lives but
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From Reported Death to Prison Witnesses: The Unrevealed Story of Samir Al-Kahlout
On October 5, 2024, the Israeli army launched a large-scale military operation in northern Gaza, targeting densely populated civilian areas. The assault resulted in a high number of martyrs and injuries, as well as the arrest of hundreds of civilians — among them Samir Mahmoud Mohammed Al-Kahlout, 53, who was severely injured on October 16,
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