After War, Family Reunites
Eight Palestinian Siblings, Separated by Gaza War, Reunite in Israel After Years-Long Legal Fight
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Key Points
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Mais al-Gharam and a team of lawyers spent years pursuing the case to secure Israeli passports for her Gaza-born siblings, enabling their relocation to Nazareth to reunite with the family.
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At Nazareth, the siblings were welcomed by their mother's extended family with hugs and homemade meals after crossing the Kerem Shalom border.
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While living in Gaza prior to relocation, the seven younger siblings had been displaced several times and, after the airstrike, survived by cooking, collecting firewood and running a small bakery with support from relatives in Nazareth.
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The deadly Israeli airstrike that killed their parents Murad al-Gharam and Amal Karim and their younger brother Maisara occurred in July 2024 in Nuseirat, Gaza.
Eight Palestinian siblings separated by war have reunited with their sister in Israel, ending years of heartbreak and legal struggle. The seven Gaza-born children — ages 8 to 22 — crossed the Kerem Shalom border and were received by their sister Mais al-Gharam, 23, in Nazareth, according to WCVB News.
The reunion came after a deadly Israeli airstrike killed their parents and younger brother in Nuseirat, Gaza, in July 2024. Mais spent years working with lawyers to secure Israeli passports for her siblings, finally bringing them home to their mother's extended family in Nazareth, WBAL-TV reported.
A Family Torn Apart by War and Airstrike
The al-Gharam family's story began in 2002. Their father, Murad al-Gharam, was from Gaza. Their mother, Amal Karim, was a Palestinian citizen of Israel. The couple built a family that stretched across two worlds — until war tore them apart, according to WBAL-TV.
In July 2024, an Israeli airstrike in Nuseirat, Gaza, killed Murad, Amal, and their youngest son, Maisara. The seven surviving siblings were left orphaned inside a war zone. They had already been displaced several times within Gaza before losing their parents, WVTM 13 reported.
Siblings Survived Gaza by Running a Small Bakery
After the airstrike, the seven children had to fend for themselves. They cooked their own food, collected firewood, and ran a small bakery to survive. Relatives in Nazareth sent money and support when they could, but the children remained trapped in an active war zone, according to WLKY.
Mais, living in Israel, watched from a distance. The last time she had seen her siblings in person was two months before the war began. She immediately began working with a legal team to get her siblings out. The effort took years of filings, appeals, and waiting, WBAL-TV reported.
Years of Legal Work Secured Israeli Passports for Gaza Children
Securing Israeli passports for Gaza-born children is deeply complicated. Mais and her lawyers had to prove the siblings' right to Israeli documents through their mother's citizenship. The process stretched across years of conflict, displacement, and bureaucracy, according to WCVB News.
Their legal effort finally paid off. The seven siblings crossed the Kerem Shalom border — a crossing near the southern edge of Gaza — and were met by Mais on the other side. She had waited at that border for years, 4029 TV reported.
Grandfather Calls Reunion a Miracle, but Grief Remains
In Nazareth, the extended family welcomed the children with hugs and homemade meals. Their grandfather, Faraj al-Gharam, described the moment as miraculous. He said it felt as though the grandchildren had "come back from the grave," according to WBAL-TV.
But joy and grief arrived together. The family mourns Murad, Amal, and young Maisara, who did not survive to see this day. The siblings are now safe in Nazareth, but they carry the weight of everything they lost, WVTM 13 reported.
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