France – World | Beautiful story: An Afghan child who went missing in the chaos of Kabul airport is reunited with his family

Sohail Ahmadi, who was handed over to a foreign soldier, went missing during the evacuation of Kabul airport on August 19: Last week, after a five-month separation, the child reunited with his family. .

The father and child were separated. Despite extensive research, it is not possible for Mirza Ali Ahmadi to get her baby back. Hamid Safi, a taxi driver, was seen crying and dropped off at the airport. “I brought it to breastfeed women”, Without success. “I was constantly looking for his family”, Swears by a 29-year-old man who went to the airport to drop off his own brother. “So I called my wife and she told me to take the baby home.”

The couple says their attempt to find the child’s parents failed. Later they named him Mohammad Abed and started raising him. “If we had not seen his family, we would have protected and raised him as our own child.”, Hamid Safi continues.

For three days, Sohail’s real father searched for his son at a crowded airport. In desperation, the former U.S. embassy guard flew to the United States with his wife and four children. After 20 years of war, Kabul airport was attacked in August by tens of thousands of Afghans desperate to leave the city with the last US troops. Many Afghans feared the Islamists would return to power, recalling the brutal regime of the 1990s or fear of retaliation against former government or collaborators with foreign forces.

“He’s like a mother”

Only last week did Sohail’s family find him in Kabul, aided by social media and police. The boy was handed over to his grandfather, a heartbreaking separation for the Safi couple and their three daughters. “I felt responsible for him like his mother”Fatima Safi, 27, explains. “He often wakes up at night (…) Now, if I wake up at night, he’s not, it makes me cry”. “I am a mother and I understand that she will not always be with us and that she needs her parents.”, She continues. Her husband admitted to sending the baby back “Very difficult”.

Sohail’s grandfather, Mirza Mohammad Qasimi, invited Safi’s family to his home in Kabul on Sunday to spend some time with the baby. “They cared for him for five months and became very attached to him“He told AFP that Safi was initially reluctant to return the baby.

Mirza Mohammad Qasimi, who was also looking for her grandson, said excitedly that now Sohail can join his parents in the United States. They contacted U.S. officials, but the process could be lengthy. “My daughter was in pain. She was crying without eating anything.”The old man clarified, wiping away the tears, and saw Sohail sleeping on Fatima’s thighs. Until Sohail joins his parents, his aunt will take care of him.

On the phone on Sunday, his father did not hide his happiness: “We have been in a sad state for the last five months (…) but when we found our baby, we were glad that God had returned our baby to us.“.