The Palestinians adopting Gaza babies with missing parents

For 23 years, Palestinian residents of Gaza, Rami Arrouki and his wife Iman, longed for a child, but have not been able to conceive.

Amid the devastation of Israel’s war on Gaza, as many children were left orphaned, the couple saw a calling – an opportunity to give love where it was lost and, in doing so, become the parents they had always hoped to be.

Following Israel’s onslaught on Gaza in October 2023, Rami, 47, began asking around to see if there was a child who had lost their parents.

He said he heard about many cases, but struggled to find a legal way to adopt a child.

He then asked his friend, Abeer, a nurse, who told him that she would definitely be able to help because the hospital regularly receives similar cases.

“Abeer then called me and told me that we had a baby girl who survived a massive air strike, and we don’t even know who her parents are,” Rami told local media.

He began the adoption process in December, when the baby was two months old, through the Ministry of Social Development. The baby was initially at the SOS village, where she had been kept in a tent after the village’s buildings were destroyed. 

“I fought for it,” Rami told local media. “I asked for the process to be expedited because it didn’t make sense for a two-month-old baby to stay in a tent when she could be in my home.”

Rami finally won his battle and brought the baby home after being deemed qualified by the ministry. He gave her the name Jannah, which means paradise in English. Jannah is now four months old.

“Jannah is not only happy in her new home, but she is also pampered,” he said.

Unicef said in January that the war has left a devastating toll on Gaza’s children, with reports indicating that at least 14,500 have been killed, thousands wounded, about 17,000 left unaccompanied or separated from their parents, and nearly one million forced to flee their homes.

“Less than half of Gaza’s 36 hospitals are functional, increasing the risk of infectious disease outbreaks and putting children at risk. Water production is at less than 25 percent capacity,” Unicef’s executive director Catherine Russell said.

Jannah is now four months old, but her parents are still working on the official adoption papers. “I don’t know if any of her family will show up to take her. We love Jannah and we are very happy with her.”

Adopted by a nurse

Amal Ismael, 34, a nurse in Der al-Balah, has a similar story.

In November 2023, the Emirates Red Crescent Hospital in Rafah, where Ismael works, received several cases from the neonatal unit at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City after the hospital was evacuated and then destroyed by the Israeli army. 

About 30 newborns in critical condition were brought to them. They had to be transferred to Egypt, and among them was a newborn girl who was unaccompanied and unidentified.

“In our department, we were strongly against sending her to Egypt because she had no guardian or family to accompany her,” Ismael told MEE.

“Around 50 people wanted to adopt her, but the head of the department refused to let anyone take her until the war was over,” she recalled.

As the war dragged on, the department decided to give Ismael the girl until they could find her family. “I gave her the name Malak because I hated that she was always called ‘the unidentified girl’. Malak means angel, and she is like an angel.”

During the war, Ismael faced immense difficulties in providing for Malak. Finding milk and diapers was a struggle, and ensuring she had proper nutrition was a daily concern.

“While I ate whatever was available, I prioritised Malak’s health, ensuring she had fruits and vegetables, especially her favorite – bananas,” said Ismael. “I even travelled long distances to secure vitamins for her.”

Initially, Ismael expected criticism for taking Malak in, but instead, her family and community have expressed pride in her decision. “I have provided Malak with love, stability, and a home,” she said.

Mahmoud Basal, the spokesperson for the Gaza Civil Defence, told local media that the number of missing individuals ranges between 10,000 and 14,000. This figure does not include detainees and primarily consists of people from northern Gaza and Gaza City.

“We have people who were killed and buried under the rubble, and others who left and never returned, and we do not know whether they were killed or detained,” Basal explained.

After the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel in early January, more decomposed bodies were discovered under the rubble, but it was difficult to identify them as DNA tests are not available in Gaza, according to Basal.

More than 48,000 Palestinians have been killed, and 111,000 have been wounded by Israeli attacks since October 7, 2023, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

Four families have reached out to Ismael to inquire if Malak was their missing child, but she was not.

“I love Malak, but I wish she would be reunited with her family and officially registered. This is better for her.”