In a scene that recalled the killing of Palestinian child Mohammed al Durrah nearly a quarter-century ago, Palestinian father Bahaa Abu al-Ajeen said the Israeli army killed his son Rayan, who was not yet 3, in his arms in Gaza last Sunday.
Speaking to Anadolu from Deir al Balah in central Gaza, Abu al-Ajeen said Israeli soldiers opened fire on him as he tried to flee while carrying his child, then left him wounded for hours beside the child’s body.
The grieving father called for an international investigation to determine the circumstances of the killing and hold those responsible accountable.
Abu al-Ajeen said he is currently being treated at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital with a wounded foot and other injuries, which were caused by Israeli gunfire and abuse.
From his hospital bed, he recounted the incident, which he said took place in an area east of Deir al Balah. Rayan was brutally killed in his fathers arms just 12 days before his third birthday, Abu al-Ajeen said.
Sudden Israeli raid
On the night of June 14 2026, the area around the Abu al-Ajeen family home was calm, and there were no drones or tanks in sight.
“I was walking on foot in that area with my child, Rayan, and suddenly, without warning, we were surprised by an Israeli military force,” he said.
Abu al-Ajeen said his instinct pushed him to run with his son in his arms, managing to move about 20 to 30 metres as the child screamed in fear.
“At that moment, Israeli soldiers fired from a very short distance, and a bullet hit Rayan in the head and exited through his eye,” he said.
He added that the soldiers then fired at him, hitting his feet and causing him to fall while still holding his child.
10 harsh hours
“The moments that followed were harsher than death itself,” the father said.
He said he tried to call an ambulance, but the soldiers took his phone, turned it off and threatened to kill him.
Instead of receiving medical aid, he said he was dragged to a military site while still holding his child.
“They wrapped Rayan in a nylon bag and threw him aside as if he had no value,” he said, crying.
“They rejected all my pleas to save him, saying coldly: No, we will leave you and him to die,” he added.
He said he was moved between military sites, blindfolded and handcuffed, left bleeding outdoors near dogs for hours, and beaten during transport.
After more than 10 hours, he said, soldiers dumped him in an abandoned area at midnight with his child’s body beside him. Civilians later took him to the hospital in Deir al Balah, where he regained consciousness and learned his son had died and his own foot may require amputation.
From his hospital bed, he appealed for an international investigation into what he called the cold-blooded killing of his son.
“I want the world to know what happened to my child, and for those responsible to be held accountable,” he said.
The incident evokes memories of Mohammed al Durrah, a 12-year-old Palestinian boy killed by Israel while crouching beside his father during the Second Intifada in September 2000. Footage of the scene, filmed for French television, became an enduring symbol of Palestinian suffering.
Rayan’s case has revived that memory, with Palestinians saying it reflects a repeated pattern amid ongoing violence in Gaza.
A ceasefire agreement was reached in October between Israel and Hamas after more than two years of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza that began in October 2023, leaving around 73,000 of Palestinians dead and over 173,000 wounded, according to local authorities.
Despite the agreement, Israel has continued its near-daily attacks, as well as restricting the entry of food, medicine and shelter materials to the enclave.
