The agonising wait for Gaza’s missing

Three years into Israel's conflict in Gaza, Palestinian families continue to grapple with the anguish of uncertain fate concerning loved ones who went missing during the war. The absence of definitive answers has left them in a state of perpetual oscillation between hope and grief, struggling to decide whether to persist in waiting or commence mourning the loss of their relatives.

According to the Independent Commission for Human Rights, over 11,000 individuals in Gaza are still unaccounted for, including those presumed to be trapped under the rubble and suspected of enforced disappearance. The Palestinian Centre for Missing and Forcibly Disappeared estimates that between 2,500 to 3,000 people are considered victims of enforced disappearance, having vanished or lost contact with their families since the onset of the war and through the ceasefire declared on 9th October 2025.

The whereabouts of these individuals remain unknown, with Israeli authorities still withholding names of those detained within the Strip and failing to identify approximately 620 bodies returned to Gaza.

The daily ordeal of families left behind is a poignant reminder of the war's devastating impact. Middle East Eye interviewed three families whose relatives disappeared during the conflict, revealing their hopes, fears, and the lengthy wait for answers.

Nidal al-Waheedi, 32 at the time of his disappearance, is one such family. His father, Suhail al-Waheedi, 62, shared his despair, stating, "If I knew he had been killed, I would have accepted it like everyone else. But we do not even know whether he is alive or dead." Nidal, a journalist, disappeared on 7th October 2023, leaving a void in his family that has grown increasingly unbearable over the years.

His family, confined to a small tent on al-Nafaq Street in central Gaza City, scrolls through photographs of their son as they wait for any news about him.

The family has reached out to various human rights organizations for assistance, but expressed frustration at the lack of responses. They are left with nothing but photographs and memories, as their home was destroyed and belongings were lost in the bombing. Despite their efforts, they have received no information from the organizations, highlighting the absence of respect for human rights during this war.