A new year of grief passes for the families of the kidnapped four young men in the Gaza Strip. They still recall the day when their sons disappeared after crossing into Egypt making their pain last longer and their wound remain fresh.
Two years of uncertainty and oppression at the hands of their Arab brothers the families experienced the worst forms of oppression and pain.
The story began when on August 19 2015 unknown gunmen kidnapped four young Palestinian men: Yasser Fathi Zanoun Hussein Khamis al-Zubda Abdullah Sa’id Abu al-Jubain and Abdel-Dayem Abu Libdeh after crossing the Rafah crossing on their way to Turkey for treatment and study according to their relatives.
This incident made the families of the four live very difficult conditions especially after 732 days of the abduction of their sons without knowing anything about their whereabouts.
Al-Qassam Brigades the armed wing of Hamas announced at the time that the four young men were of its members and held the Egyptian authorities accountable and responsible for their safety and demanded their release and the end of their enforced disappearance.
In light of the Egyptian silence almost two years after their disappearance leaked images of two of the abductees Yasser Zanoun and Abdel-Dayem Abu Libdeh were revealed from an Egyptian prison confirming without any doubt their detention by the security authorities in Egypt.
Continuing concern
“Two years passed in which we were subjected to the most severe forms of oppression and injustice due to what our kidnapped brothers were subjected to. We do not know about their conditions and whether they are alive or dead” Alaa the brother of the abducted Yasser Zanoun told the PIC reporter.
“We spoke to all concerned parties such as the Red Cross human rights organizations and to the delegations that visit the Egyptian side every time the Rafah crossing is open” he said.
He added “We live in constant anxiety and pain especially as we see no light at the end of the tunnel.” He called on Palestinian officials to intervene to know more information about their sons and their whereabouts.
Zanoun stressed that his mother suffered from several diseases including blood pressure and diabetes after the abduction of her son while his brother’s wife wakes up at night panicked and his brother’s children grow up without knowing their father.
Top priority
The recent rapprochement between Hamas and Egypt has created a glimpse of hope among the families of the abductees. The Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya al-Sunwar who headed the Movement’s delegation to Cairo several months ago confirmed that the abductees’ issue was on the top priority in their talks with Egypt according to Zanoun.
“We want to know the fate of our sons. When Israel arrests someone they would inform his family a week later. This was the case of Dirar Abu Sisi who was kidnapped from Ukraine” Zanoun said adding “If they violated Egyptian law Egypt has the right to try them according to the principles of law”.
For Egypt
Mohammed Abu Libdeh the spokesman for the families of the abductees said that there was nothing new in the issue of the kidnapped youths. He pointed out that the Gaza delegations visiting Egypt convey the message of the abductees and put their issue on the top of their priorities yet the Egyptian authorities revealed no information about their whereabouts.
“We are entering the third year and there is no information about their detention and whether they are alive or dead” said the brother of Abdel Dayem Abu Libdeh. “We live in constant anxiety and suffering without knowing the fate of our brother.”
He called on the Egyptian authorities to return the abductees and to end their detention. He pointed out that the last incident that took place in Rafah by martyr Nidal al-Jaafari (who died in Rafah after blocking an ISIS member who was trying to infiltrate into the Sinai) is proof that the Gaza Strip is sacrificing the lives of its people to protect its security in general and the security of Egypt in particular.
A letter to the Egyptian authorities released by the families of the four read: “Two years of oppression sadness and constant pain. Please return our sons to us. They did not commit any crime against Egypt or others. The people of the Gaza Strip wish the best for Egypt and its people.”
The messaged hoped that the Egyptian authorities would appease the hearts of the families about the fate of their children and to allow the families to communicate with them if they don’t want to release them.
