Father reunites with wife from Gaza in Toronto, touches his newborn child for the first time
A new mother fleeing war-torn Gaza arrived in Toronto Friday and introduced her husband to their three-week old daughter for the first time.
“I don’t know what to say, finally I got my dream,” he told CTV News Toronto at Pearson airport, still holding the bouquet of flowers he brought for his wife, Yara.
Ahmad came to Canada as a student and is now a permanent resident. He had been preparing his home in Brantford, Ont. for his new family while his wife remained in Gaza. But then she got caught in a war zone.
“The war started … and there was loss of contact,” family friend Baha Eliasblhajaa told CTV News Toronto. “He lost family members.”
There were times when Ahmad did not hear from Yara for days.
She was staying in a refugee camp, and says that she could hear bombs going off nearby. The camp was one of multiple targets of Israeli airstrikes.
Yara described through her husband, who acted as a translator, how she fled to safety and feared for the life of both herself and her child.
Ahmed Abuajedian, his wife Yara and newborn baby Sila at Toronto Pearson International airport. (Nov. 10, 2023)
“We could hear the bombardment in the ground and in the air and in the sea,” she said. “We were just running, running from place to place to get safe.”
Forty-eight hours ago, Yara learned that some foreign nationals were being allowed to cross the Rafah border into Egypt. With the help of friends and Brantford MP Larry Brock, Ahmad was able to secure his wife a visa and quickly booked a plane ticket.
“I had to be a realist. We’re hearing tragic stories hour by hour, day by day,” Brock said. “It's been a harrowing experience for Ahmad…Not knowing whether or not his pregnant wife was safe and would be able to deliver safely.”
“We're just absolutely thrilled beyond belief that this day has finally come to fruition.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
India's foreign minister reacts to murder charges, claims Canada welcomes criminals
India's Foreign Affairs Minister accused Canada of welcoming criminals from his country in response to the RCMP's recent arrests in a homicide that has roiled tensions between the two countries.
15-year-old boy stabbed in Ottawa on Thursday dies
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Dash cam catches moment suspected drunk driver hits parked car, sends it careening into North Shore flower shop
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
Actor Bernard Hill, of 'Titanic' and 'Lord of the Rings,' has died at 79
Actor Bernard Hill, who delivered a rousing cry before leading his people into battle in 'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King' and went down with the ship as the captain in 'Titanic,' has died.
'A tiny city:' Pro-Palestinian campus protesters organize for another week
Pro-Palestinian activists have set up tents at universities in Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver and Montreal, following a wave of similar protests at campuses in the United States linked to the Israel-Hamas war.
Lawsuit against Meta asks if Facebook users have right to control their feeds using external tools
Do social media users have the right to control what they see — or don't see — on their feeds?
A Holocaust survivor will mark that history differently after the horrors of Oct. 7
This year's Holocaust Remembrance Day, which begins on Sunday evening in Israel, carries a heavier weight than usual for many Jews around the world.
Princess Anne lays wreath at Battle of Atlantic ceremony; honours late Queen
Princess Anne saluted Canadian veterans and current forces members and honoured her late mother during separate ceremonies Sunday in Victoria as she wrapped up a three-day British Columbia West Coast royal visit.
El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.