Heartbreaking Tribute To Four Boys Killed On Gaza Beach Created By Israeli Artist Amir Schiby

Israeli Artist Creates Heartbreaking Tribute To Four Boys Killed On Gaza Beach

They will never play on the beach again.

As the Gaza conflict escalates, the world was shocked by the deaths of four young Palestinian boys, who were killed on a Gaza beach by Israeli shells in front of a group of international journalists. They were all between the ages of nine and ten years old, and all belonged to the Bakr family.

Israeli artist Amir Schiby, known for his politically satirical collages, created an image of Ahed Atef Bakr, Zakaria Ahed Bakr, Mohamed Ramez Bakr, and Ismael Mohamed Bakr, to honor their tragically short lives. It depicts a lone soccer ball in the surf, with the shadows of playing children nearby. He wrote on Facebook that the image was created "as a tribute to *all* children living in war zones."

Ayman Mohyeldin, a journalist who reported on the attacks, tweeted earlier:

4 Palestinian kids killed in a single Israeli airstrike. Minutes before they were killed by our hotel, I was kicking a ball with them #gaza

— Ayman Mohyeldin (@AymanM) July 16, 2014

Schiby's photo comes in the wake of dozens of wrenching images in the aftermath of the deaths of the Bakr boys. A picture of the father of one of the victims went viral on social media, as a gutting display of the human cost of the conflict.

Schiby's image of innocence and loss is striking a chord with many following the conflict. Gily Stein of Tel Aviv wrote, "Couldn't watch the original picture cause they're so horrifying, but this one carries as much emotional impact."

Before You Go

Getty Images
Palestinian firefighters extinguish a fire that broke out after an Israeli air strike hit a car in Gaza City, Gaza on July 14, 2014.
Getty Images
Palestinian firefighters extinguish a fire that broke out after an Israeli air strike hit a car in Gaza City, Gaza on July 14, 2014.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
An Israeli police sapper surveys a damaged house after a rocket fired by Palestinian militants hit in a kibbutz near the border with the Gaza Strip, in Ashdod, Israel, Monday, July 14, 2014.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Smoke rises after an Israeli missile strike in Gaza City, Monday, July 14, 2014.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Smoke rises after an Israeli missile strike in Gaza City, Monday, July 14, 2014.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Smoke rises after an Israeli missile strike in Gaza City, Monday, July 14, 2014.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Palestinians cover the ruble of a destroyed house following an overnight Israeli missile strike in Gaza City Monday, July 14, 2014.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A Palestinian man walks next to a destroyed house following an overnight Israeli missile strike in Gaza City Monday, July 14, 2014.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A Palestinian man walks next to a destroyed house following an overnight Israeli missile strike in Gaza City Monday, July 14, 2014.
JACK GUEZ via Getty Images
An Israeli bomb disposal expert extinguishes the fire following a rocket attack by Palestinian militants from the Gaza Strip outside a house in the southern Israeli city of Kfar Aza, on July 14, 2014.
JACK GUEZ via Getty Images
Israeli bomb disposal experts inspect the damage at a house following a rocket attack by Palestinian militants from the Gaza Strip outside a house in the southern Israeli city of Kfar Aza, on July 14, 2014.
SAID KHATIB via Getty Images
Smoke billows from a building hit by an Israeli air strike in the town of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on July 14, 2014.
SAID KHATIB via Getty Images
Smoke billows from a building hit by an Israeli air strike in the town of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on July 14, 2014.
Getty Images
An Israeli Merkava tank rolls at an army deployment along the Israel's border with the Gaza Strip on July 14, 2014.
Getty Images
Palestinians inspect a house destroyed in air attacks staged by Israel army within the scope of 'Operation Protective Edge' in Gaza City, Gaza on July 14, 2014.
Getty Images
Palestinians inspect a house destroyed in air attacks staged by Israel army within the scope of 'Operation Protective Edge' in Gaza City, Gaza on July 14, 2014.
Getty Images
A picture taken on July 14, 2014 from the southern Israeli Gaza border shows an Israeli army flare falling into the Palestinian enclave.
Getty Images
Palestinians look at damaged cars amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following an Israeli air strike on July 14, 2014 in Gaza City.
Getty Images
A Palestinian stands looking at damaged cars amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following an Israeli air strike on July 14, 2014 in Gaza City.
Getty Images
A picture taken on July 14, 2014 from the southern Israeli Gaza border shows an Israeli army flare falling into the Palestinian enclave.
Close

What's Hot