Missing Afghan Baby Handed to a Soldier Amid Chaotic Kabul Evacuation Finally Reunited With His Family
Photo by MOHD RASFAN/AFP via Getty Images
An Afghan baby who was separated from his family outside the Kabul airport amid the U.S. withdrawal of troops has been reunited with his grandfather and relatives still in Kabul, Reuters reported on Sunday.
According to the report, Sohail Ahmadi — who was just two months old when he was separated from his family on Aug. 29 — was returned to his family “after more than seven weeks of negotiations and pleas, and ultimately a brief detention by Taliban police.”
The baby was discovered in the airport by 29-year-old Hamid Safi, who took him home to raise as his own with his wife after failing to locate the child’s family.
Pictured above is Safi giving Ahmadi a kiss at the child’s grandfather’s home in Kabul, after the two were reunited this weekend.
“I entered the airport and saw a baby lying on the ground in a very bad state,” Safi told Reuters. “I looked around and showed the child to many people, but I couldn’t find anyone related to him. I called my wife at home, and I refused to go to America, I brought the child home. I bought him milk, and we have been taking care of the child since that time.”
Ahmadi’s father, Mirza Ali Ahmadi, who previously worked as a security guard for the U.S. embassy, arrived at the airport with his wife and their five children in hopes of being evacuated. He told Reuters that they feared the two-month old would be crushed in the crowd.
They handed him to a U.S. soldier, believing they would soon reach the airport entrance. However, Taliban forces began pushing back hopeful evacuees, causing delays in reaching the entrance. By the time they did, the baby was nowhere to be found.
However, after Reuters reported on Safi finding a baby at the airport, relatives of Ahmadi began asking for the child to be returned.
According to Reuters, Safi initially resisted efforts to reunite the child with his family — prompting relatives of Ahmadi to report a kidnapping to local officials.
The local police commander, Hamid Malang, told Reuters that the complaint was dismissed, as they were able to help arrange a settlement between the two families which includes compensating Safi around $950 USD for taking care of the baby.
“The grandfather of the baby complained to us and we found Hamid and based on the evidence we had, we recognized the baby,” Malang said. “With both sides in agreement, the baby will be handed over to his grandfather.”
Since the evacuation, Ahmadi’s family resettled in an apartment in Michigan. The baby’s parents watched the reunion over video chat and are working on getting the child to the U.S.
“I was so sad and always crying for my baby,” his mother Suraya told Reuters. “Now I hope he arrives here safely. Last night, I did not sleep due to happiness.”
