Al-Rihiya, occupied West Bank – On the morning of October 16, nine-year-old Muhammad al-Hallaq woke up for another day in his small village south of Hebron.

His mother, Alia, prepared his clothes and breakfast, and packed three extra slices of pizza for him to share with his friends, just like he’d asked.

Muhammad came back from school with a new backpack and put his books and notepads inside it, excited to take it to school after the weekend. He ate a bit of food and then went out to watch the birds, as he liked to do.

A child, excited by the simple things, and curious about the world around him.

Muhammad came home, messed around with some olives, and then went out again to play football. This time, the fourth-grader didn’t come back.

‘Muhammad was gone’

At the grocery store, Ali

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