Ahmad Herbawi

My name is Ahmad. I was the eldest boy in my family and I took that role very seriously. After my father passed away, I became the primary breadwinner of my mother and my six siblings. I was a responsible person but I also loved to do some mischief with my brothers. We used to sneak out of the house and go to martyrs’ square to meet up with some friends. Although this would often lead us to a lot of trouble with our mother, trouble which I would always take the full blame for myself.

By the time the war had started I was about to open a shop to support my family, and in order to settle down and start a family of my own. But my plans were cut short. Few months into the war and as the clashes intensified, we decided to leave the Nabaa area - where we were living with my grandmother- to settle in West Beirut region.

One day, while I was with my mother and my sister in a taxi returning from our visit to teta back to our new place, we were stopped at a checkpoint. I was asked to get out of the car, along with two other passengers—leaving my mother and sister in the taxi. My mother, Khadija, shouted and begged the armed men to let me go. But they did not.

Just like many other families of missing persons, she received calls from people promising her to speak to me over the phone in exchange for money. She would pay them every single time, hoping that this time would be different, that she could trust that person. But she never got to speak to me. These people only took advantage of her situation and exploited her despair. She became devastated which took a toll on her health.

Since then, she never stopped searching for me. She met with other parents who were going through the same pain and together they started asking for the release of their loved ones. To date, she has attended every single demonstration and gathering, calling for answers. A few days ago, on mother’s day, she passed away. Like Odette, Nayfeh and many other mothers, she died without knowing what happened to her son. However, their fight is not over.

My name is Ahmad Herbawi. Do not let our stories end here.