Amir: A Devastating Palestinian Story

Amir, The Story of a Gazan Boy Who Went Through Hell to Get Any Food or Aid

This picture is of a young boy from Gaza named Amir. He was one of thousands who flocked to a aid distribution center in the southern part of the Strip. To get there, he walked about 12 kilometers barefoot. He hadn't slept in days, hadn't eaten in weeks. He was going to get any food he could find for his family. Amir arrived with difficulty, managing to get a bag of lentils and half a bag of flour. He then knelt on the ground to pick up food that had spilled on the dirt due to the immense crowd.

With his frail body, bones showing from hunger, and a spirit tormented by the hell he was living through during the war, Amir went to the nearest person working at the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which was overseeing the aid distribution. That person was a retired American soldier named Tony Aguilar. Amir came close to him, took his hand, and kissed it.

Tony said he couldn't speak Arabic, and Amir couldn't speak English, but because Tony had spent 25 years fighting in the Middle East in various wars, he knew that when an Arab person kisses another's hand, it's a sign of great respect and appreciation. Tony said he got down on the ground to the level of the weak Palestinian child, Amir, and looked into his eyes, whose brown color reminded him of his own son. He felt a strong spiritual connection begin to bind him to Amir. Amir didn't stop at kissing Aguilar's hand; he put the things he had received on the ground and cupped the American soldier's face with his small, weak hands, and in English, he said: "Thank You."

Although Aguilar knew Amir wouldn't understand him, he kept telling him: "People care about you. People in America care about you. I care about you."

In an interview with American host Tucker Carlson, Aguilar revealed the role of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) in the deaths of hundreds of Gazans as they rushed to get aid, and about what he called "death traps." He spoke about the occupation soldiers who controlled the crowds by firing indiscriminately to direct them to and from the aid locations, using automatic weapons, shells, tanks, mortar bombs, and more. He said that the Nasser Medical Hospital confirmed a direct link between the number of injured people arriving there and the times of aid distribution at the four GHF sites in the Strip.

Aguilar said he left Amir to prepare for the 12-kilometer return journey, without water, and without any dry food he could eat. But Amir didn't make it back to his family because he was hit by a bullet and was martyred.

Aguilar told Tucker Carlson that he is not interested in being famous or telling his personal story. He wants Amir's story and the story of the Palestinians to be known. He wants to expose the role of GHF, which receives hundreds of millions of dollars that go to unknown and suspicious parties and never reach the Palestinian people. He also wants to expose their complicity with the occupation army in the indiscriminate killing of Gazan civilians and the commission of war crimes against them.

Because of Amir, Aguilar is now appearing on every media outlet he can to talk about Amir, despite the fierce attacks he faces, the questioning of his story, and the attacks on his character and military history.

May God have mercy on Amir and the 63,371 martyrs who fell in the worst humanitarian tragedy and war crime in modern history, while the entire world watched without any action to save what remains of this great, resilient people, who are giving a great lesson in patience, sacrifice, and holding on to their land and homeland.