One of the most shocking stories of the Israel-Hamas war unraveled this week as a fabrication. Retired U.S. Green Beret Anthony Aguilar claimed he witnessed Israeli soldiers shoot dead a young Gazan boy named “Amir” after he had gratefully received food aid. The tale, widely reported by international outlets, was portrayed as a brutal war crime.

But the boy, whose real name is Abdul Rahim Muhammad Hamden—nicknamed Abboud—was later found alive and unharmed. In an exclusive Fox News interview, Abboud and his mother Najlaa confirmed he had been hiding to avoid Hamas retribution, since exposing the truth would have undermined the propaganda. The pair were recently extracted safely from Gaza.

Aguilar’s shifting accounts of where the alleged shooting took place, along with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s own investigation, revealed his story was false. While Abboud really did receive food and kiss Aguilar’s hand in gratitude, everything else was invented. Despite Aguilar’s dismissal from GHF, the damage remains: his claims fueled international accusations of Israeli war crimes, highlighting how false narratives can travel far faster than the truth.