Photo shows 7-year-old child in Gaza, not dead teenager

Published on August 12, 2025 at 09:47
3 min read
By Anne CHAN, AFP Hong Kong

Multiple news organisations have reported a Palestinian teenager was among those who recently died of malnutrition in Gaza as UN agencies warned of famine in the devastated territory. But a supposed picture of him widely shared on Chinese social media in fact shows a seven-year-old child.

Warning: graphic images of suffering

"This 17-year-old Palestinian youth called Atif Ebu Hatir starved to death in the Gaza famine jointly manufactured by the United States and Israel," reads part of a simplified Chinese RedNote post shared August 7, 2025.

It includes a picture showing the back of a severely emaciated person.

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Screenshot of the false RedNote post taken August 8, 2025, with a red X added by AFP

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Turkey's Anadolu Agency and TRT Global reported on the teenager's death while AFP distributed multiple pictures of his body in a Gaza City hospital (archived here and here).

The World Health Organization has said 99 people are known to have died from malnutrition in Gaza so far this year, with the figure likely an underestimate (archived link).

International outrage over the humanitarian situation has ratcheted up pressure on Israel, with UN agencies warning of famine in the Palestinian territory.

Since returning to the White House in January, US President Donald Trump has offered Israel ironclad support, even while pushing for better humanitarian support (archived link).

Similar posts on Douyin also shared the picture but a reverse search on Google traced it to an Anadolu report on August 5, 2025 (archived link).

AFP also distributed the photo, which is credited to Gaza-based Anadolu photographer Ali Jadallah (archived link).

"Seven-year-old May Abu Arar, whose life is in danger due to severe malnutrition, is receiving treatment at the Patient Friends Association Hospital in Gaza City, Gaza on August 03, 2025," its caption says.

"Israel's closed border crossings and the tight blockade it imposes severely restrict the flow of food and medicine into Gaza."

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