Amputee Palestinian boy picture wins World Press Photo award

A powerful photograph of nine-year-old Palestinian boy Mahmoud Ajjour, who lost both arms in an Israeli airstrike on Gaza City, has won the 2025 World Press Photo of the Year Award.

Captured by Gaza-based photojournalist Samar Abu Elouf for The New York Times, the image shows Mahmoud after being evacuated to Doha, where he is now recovering.

Elouf, who was also evacuated from Gaza in December 2023, shared that Mahmoud’s first heartbreaking words to his mother upon realizing his arms were gone were: “How will I be able to hug you?”

The portrait was praised for its quiet intensity, strong composition, and emotional depth, representing both an individual tragedy and the broader humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Read more: 180 Jewish worshippers allowed to pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque for first time

Despite his injuries, Mahmoud is adapting by using his feet to write, open doors, and play games — dreaming one day of receiving prosthetics and living like any other child.

The World Press Photo jury reviewed over 59,000 submissions and selected 42 winners globally.

Runner-up honors included “Droughts in the Amazon” by Musuk Nolte, and “Night Crossing” by John Moore, which depicts Chinese migrants at the US-Mexico border. Nairobi-based Luis Tato also won in the Africa region for his documentation of Kenya’s youth protests.