This mother reunited with her son 420 days after his detention. She feared he was dead
Muhammad Abu Sahloul among minors released last week under Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal
It was a frigid Wednesday night when Nevin Abu Sahloul, 39, waited impatiently for news of her son Muhammad. The 17-year-old had been missing since early last year, and Abu Sahloul had feared the worst — that he had died in the midst of a raging war in Gaza.
As she slowly moved through the crowd, she and her sister, Nidaa Abu Sahloul, stayed close together trying to find anyone who might have information.
Hundreds of people were at the European Hospital in southern Gaza waiting to see if their loved ones would be among the 620 Palestinians released in the latest exchange of hostages and prisoners agreed to in the first phase of the ceasefire between Israel and the militant group Hamas.
"The feeling is indescribable when we found out he was alive. Indescribable," Abu Sahloul told CBC News freelance videographer Mohamed El Saife. "I couldn't imagine that Muhammad was alive, and now he's being released."
The latest exchange marks the end of the first phase of the ceasefire deal in which 33 Israeli hostages, including eight bodies, were released for almost 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
On Thursday, Israel sent negotiators to meet in Cairo to discuss extending the initial phase. In a response on Friday, Hamas "reaffirmed its full commitment to implementing all terms of the agreement in all its stages and details" in a post to the messaging service Telegram.
Waiting for son's release takes a toll
The ceasefire agreement was reached after more than 15 months of war, which began with a Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, that killed about 1,200 Israelis and led to about 250 people being taken hostage in Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. Israel's subsequent military offensive killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.
Muhammad was meant to be released along with more than 40 other minors on Feb. 22, but it was delayed by Israel, which complained that the manner in which Hamas was releasing hostages was "humiliating."
The ceasefire began on Jan. 19, and over the last several weeks, Israeli hostages were displayed on stages set up in various neighbourhoods in the Gaza Strip and made to wave to crowds of people before being handed over to Red Cross officials.
When El Saife spoke to Abu Sahloul, the mother had just begun what would be an overnight wait at the hospital to no avail.
At about 5 a.m. on Wednesday, she was told the bus driving her son and other detainees would not arrive until noon. Tired and overwhelmed, she collapsed to her knees as her sister tried to console her.
Hours later, headed by a convoy of Red Cross jeeps, a bus pulled up to the European Hospital in Khan Younis. From a distance, the passengers all looked identical, with shaved heads and wearing grey sweatsuits.
Some hung out of open windows and waved at the crowd gathering nearby, while some detainees were in tears.
Muhammad's aunt, Nidaa, was the one who first caught a glimpse of him on the bus. She had been waiting with Abu Sahloul since the night before to see if his name would come up on the list to be released.
"I couldn't believe it when I saw him on the bus," she said.
'It's an indescribable feeling'
Released detainees receive a medical checkup in the hospital and a change of clothes before they can reunite with their families. But before Muhammad, still in his grey sweats, could make his way to the hospital, he and his mother found each other and embraced.
They had waited 13 months for this moment, many times losing hope it would ever happen. Muhammad was out of breath and in tears as his family surrounded him and anxiously waited for their turn to hug him.
"It's an indescribable feeling. God willing every mother of a detainee feels the happiness that I saw," Abu Sahloul said.
The teen told El Saife that he was arrested on Jan. 24, 2024, and spent 420 days in custody, where he said he was beaten and electrocuted — the "worst treatment" he had ever seen in his life. Muhammad said that no information was given to his family when he was detained. His mother contacted organizations that would know if he was detained, but she always returned empty-handed.
Eventually, Muhammad said, he lost hope he would ever see his family again.
"I didn't expect a day would come when I would see the sky without bars," he said.
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With files from Mohamed El Saife and Reuters