A photo of a Palestinian detainee from Gaza, depicted shackled and subjected to torture and posted by an Israeli platform on social media, has reopened the wounds of many families of missing individuals believed to have been detained by the Israeli occupation army during its war on the Strip.

The image of the young man, estimated to be in his twenties or thirties, appeared about a week ago. He is blindfolded, stripped down to his underwear, shackled to a small cot, and facing the ground while in Israeli custody. Israel has acknowledged the authenticity of the photo, stating that such treatment is "inconsistent" with the "values of its army," but it has yet to disclose the man's identity or location.

Since the photo, which obscures the man's facial features, was circulated, families of missing persons have sought to verify whether he is the loved one they are waiting for. However, three families claim they are certain the person in the photo is their absent son.

Local Palestinian human rights estimates and government agencies in the Strip suggest that approximately 9,000 people are missing, with their families unaware of their fate since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza in October 2023.

"My son Amin... and my wish is to embrace him before I die"

Elderly Dawlat al-Ghoul (62), a resident of the Mukhabarat area northwest of Gaza City whose home was destroyed, now lives in a displaced persons' tent in the vicinity. She has not stopped weeping bitterly since seeing the photo, which renewed her hope of seeing her son Amin, who has been forcibly disappeared for more than two and a half years.

The Palestinian woman residing in Gaza, Dawlat al-Ghoul, mother of the missing young man Amin (Asharq Al-Awsat).

The woman told Asharq Al-Awsat: "My wish is to embrace him just once before I die; my husband also passed away while I was searching for our son Fadi." She explained that the family lost track of him on November 14, 2023, after he left the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, where he was receiving treatment for an illness. Since then, they have had no news of him until the recent photo surfaced.

The woman explains that she identified her son Amin through specific physical features, including "a previous injury from a fracture in his hand, as well as a gunshot wound in his leg, which was confirmed to the family by released prisoners."

Amin's family says their missing son worked as a driver for a vehicle transporting desalinated drinking water. The mother confirmed that since Amin's disappearance and his father's death, his brother Fadi has continued searching for him, approaching international human rights organizations and others to determine his brother's fate; however, Israel has denied his presence in its custody every time.

The woman describes the moment she saw the photo: "The picture broke my heart... I want my son... I miss my son... I haven't forgotten him, and my tears haven't dried up for him. After seeing the photo, my heart burned even more seeing him in such a state and in such torment... They have no heart, no feeling. They destroyed us. I don't know why they are doing this to us... I want my son back to me so I can be reassured; I don't want anything else from this world."

Regarding other families identifying the same photo and claiming it is their son, al-Ghoul said: "Everyone is clutching at straws. May God help the people; everyone is afraid for their son."

Meanwhile, Fadi al-Ghoul, brother of the young man believed to be in the photo, pointed out that many prisoners released from Israeli jails had confirmed to him that his brother was in prison, at a time when Israel was denying this in its statements to the Red Cross and other entities. He noted that his brother was arrested at the Netzarim junction separating the north, center, and south of the Strip, and that he had been wounded in the thigh at the time.

"His name is Fares... and he has been missing for 3 weeks"

Another family in Gaza, the Daalis family, living in displacement tents in the Gaza Port area, identified the person in the photo. Some members said the person shown is their son Fares, who went missing three weeks ago at the 'yellow line' in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood east of Gaza City while attempting to check on their home to see if it remained intact or had been destroyed, as has been the case for months with the systematic destruction of remaining houses in the area controlled by Israel.

Najla Daalis, Fares's sister, says she recognized her brother's features through the photo that spread on Facebook, adding to Asharq Al-Awsat: "Many features are his, especially since he had been suffering from 'smallpox,' and there were marks of it on his hand before he fully recovered."

The Palestinian woman residing in Gaza, Najla Daalis, sister of the missing young man Fares (Asharq Al-Awsat).

Najla explains that no entity, such as the Red Cross or international organizations, has contacted the family to confirm the identity of the person in the photo.

While Najla, who lost her father and brother in Israeli airstrikes over the past years, expressed surprise at several families announcing that the photo also belongs to their relative, she did not blame any of these families, given that everyone is clinging to any news that might lead them to have peace of mind about their relatives.

"Our son Osama... and these signs confirm it"

A third family, the Abu Nassar family, residents of the Al-Maghazi refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, announced that they recognized the person in the photo. Mohammed Abu Nassar confirmed that it belongs to his son Osama (25), citing what he described as "several signs that confirm it."

Osama's mother and sisters also participated in identifying his photo after examining it closely. The father told Asharq Al-Awsat: "My son had a wound on the bottom of his foot, and I recognized him."

He pointed out that his son was suffering from psychological disorders when he was arrested at the yellow line east of Al-Maghazi camp, suggesting he may have been shackled in the manner shown in the photo before being transferred to the Sde Teiman detention center.

The father explained that his son Osama "was arrested on March 19 (before the last Eid al-Fitr). Contact was made with the Red Cross and some human rights lawyers who later confirmed that he was in Sde Teiman, before being moved to the Negev prison later."

The Palestinian man residing in Gaza, Mohammed Abu Nassar, father of the missing young man Osama (Asharq Al-Awsat).

The competition for hope in the return of the absent has reopened the wounds of Palestinian families in the Strip who are still losing their children. Among them is the Al-Banna family, who live in Gaza City and were surprised late last week by the return of their son Hamada after his release. They had lost track of him along with his brothers Adham and Amjad, who were killed by Israeli forces. It was believed that Hamada was with them, but his body was never found.

One of the family members recounted that after their financial suffering and paying large sums—to the point where Hamada's fiancée sold her gold jewelry to determine his fate by hiring a lawyer inside Israel—and after securing the funds, they were surprised by a phone call from a person who said he was "Hamada" and that he would be released shortly. His father had thought it was just a ploy, before being surprised hours later by his arrival in the Strip.