Gaza aid group says boy reported killed at site found and transported safely out of Gaza

A Gazan boy whom a former Gaza Humanitarian Foundation contractor claimed was killed by the IDF has been located and sent abroad with his mother, says the US- and Israeli-backed GHF.

Former US special forces soldier Anthony Aguilar told international media outlets in July that after he gave food to “Amir” at a GHF site in southern Gaza, the IDF opened fire and killed him.

Democratic US Senator Bernie Sanders pushed Aguilar’s story on his official social media accounts, saying that the veteran “witnessed atrocities committed using American taxpayer dollars.”

After the story was picked up around the world, the GHF began looking for the boy, who they say is named Abd al-Rahim “Aboud” Mohammed Hamdan.

The organization says it used connections with Gazans, and experts in its team, to find the boy and his mother.

The GHF says it used biometrics and other means to identify the boy, and found in his possession the shirt he was wearing in the Aguilar video.

He and his mother are in a secure, undisclosed location, says the GHF in a press conference.

The GHF shares photos of the boy with GHF staff and outside of the Gaza Strip, as well as video of Aboud with rescuers. They also share a video of his mother speaking with GHF staff.

“I want to travel for my son’s best interest,” she says in Arabic in an edited video. “I’m leaving out of my own free will, no one pressured me.”

WATCH: Abood and his biological mother with a GHF humanitarian lead.

"You doing okay? I'm okay."

Learn the full story of how we found and brought Abood and his family to safety: ⬇️https://t.co/sNdE78biuO pic.twitter.com/1qUq5lfp9m

— Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (@GHFUpdates) September 4, 2025

“Thanks to our extraordinary relationship with the people of Gaza, our aid teams, American military veterans, and the deep trust built through GHF’s daily distribution of humanitarian aid – we were able to locate Aboud and he is now safe,” says GHF CEO John Acree.

“We are grateful to all those who worked day and night on this remarkable mission, including the US Embassy in Israel and regional governments, all of whom coordinated closely with GHF to ensure the safety of one child.”

What followed was a high-stakes, multinational diplomatic effort. We are grateful to the U.S. Embassy in Israel, and to other countries in the region for their close coordination with GHF over the past week to make this rescue possible.

Abood is alive. He is safe. pic.twitter.com/KGbH5AsjVi

— Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (@GHFUpdates) September 4, 2025