Image Captures Injured Palestinian Child Picked as Photograph of the Year
In a heart-wrenching tale, a young Palestinian boy named Mahmoud Ajjour, hailing from Gaza, captures the world's attention post an Israeli airstrike incident. This nine-year-old hero faced a life-altering trauma: losing both arms in the attack.
Photographer Samar Abu Elouf, also a Palestinian native, met Mahmoud three months later, when one arm was severed and the other horribly mutilated. The family sought medical treatment in Doha, Qatar, where Abu Elouf resides. In a moving tribute to Mahmoud's resilience, his poignant portrait was captured for The New York Times. This emotionally charged image, titled Press Photo of the Year, shines a light on Mahmoud's inspiring journey.
The photograph's poignancy stems from the heart-wrenching dichotomy between light and darkness, beauty and pain. One of Mahmoud's initial fears, his mother shared, was about returning his mother's hug. This powerful connection resonates with the emotional and psychological toll the injury took on Mahmoud and his loved ones.
With over 59,000 entries from 3,778 photographers across 141 countries, Mahmoud's story was selected among the best, signifying its universal appeal. The image serves as a haunting testament to the long-term consequences of wars for generations. Le Monde's M magazine director, Lucy Conticello, described the entry as a reflection of the contest's central themes - conflict, migration, and climate change. However, it also symbolizes stories of resilience, family, and community.
This moving portrait is currently showcased in a traveling exhibition, debuting at De Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam on April 18, 2025, followed by displays worldwide, including in London, Jakarta, Sydney, and Mexico City. Two other works were selected as runners-up; an otherworldly image of Chinese migrants warming themselves by a fire after crossing the US-Mexico border and a haunting image of a young man walking to his village, now inaccessible by boat, along a desert-like riverbed in the Amazon.
The ongoing conflict in Gaza, apparently triggered by the deadly October 7 rampage by Hamas militants, sadly resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands, leading to widespread destruction and displacement of residents. According to the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, approximately half of those killed belong to women and children.
In a press statement, Joumana El Zein Khoury, executive director of World Press Photo, acknowledged the photograph's emotional impact, stating, "This is a quiet photo that speaks loudly. It tells the story of one boy, but also of a wider war that will have an impact for generations."
- Samar Abu Elouf, a Palestinian native and photographer, met Mahmoud Ajjour, a young boy from Gaza who lost both arms in an Israeli airstrike, three months after the incident.
- The poignant portrait of Mahmoud, taken by Abu Elouf, was displayed in The New York Times and was titled Press Photo of the Year.
- The image captures Mahmoud's inspiring journey, resonating with universal themes like conflict, migration, and climate change, as well as stories of resilience, family, and community.
- The exhibited portrait is part of a traveling exhibition, which debuted at De Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam on April 18, 2025, and will be displayed worldwide in cities such as London, Jakarta, Sydney, and Mexico City.
- The ongoing conflict in Gaza, allegedly instigated by Hamas militants' deadly October 7 rampage, has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands, mostly women and children, leading to widespread destruction and displacement of residents.
- Joumana El Zein Khoury, executive director of World Press Photo, recognized the photograph's emotional impact, describing it as a quiet photo that speaks loudly, telling the story of one boy but also of a wider war that will have an impact for generations.
