Jun. 3, 2021 10:35 PM
Umar Snobar is brought into the room so he can be shown off, held in the arms of his Aunt Iman, his father’s sister. Umar is wrapped in a light blue wool blanket. His little head turns from side to side, his face is sallow, his hands are miniatures.
He’s 2 weeks old. A tense silence falls in the room at the sight of the newborn. Only his grandmother breaks into quiet sobs, “Haram [“pity” in Arabic] on the baby,” she whispers through her tears. The other family members stop themselves from responding like her.
But no one in the room is left indifferent at the sight of the infant. No one can remain indifferent, not choke up, when there’s a 2-week-old orphan.