My grandfather, Ben Tzion Taizi (Uziyahu), was born in 1920 in Aden and immigrated to Israel in 1925 at the age of 5. My grandmother, Mazal Shama, was born in Aden in 1923 and immigrated to Israel in 1926. They both lived in Kerem HaTeimanim in Tel Aviv.

They got married in Israel and had children here. In 1941 their second son, Gavriel, was born. When he was about two years old, he fell ill and my grandmother took him to Hadassah hospital in Tel Aviv (on Rehov Balfour), and she visited him every day. He was her second child, and at that time she was also in her third pregnancy. After a few days, she was told that her son was dead. She went home in shock. My grandfather went to the hospital and asked to see the child. They told him that he was buried in a mass grave. And when he asked for a death certificate, he was told there was none.

Gavriel is the baby on the left in the picture; he bears a birthmark on his right arm in the shape of an eye (or a leaf).

I am their granddaughter, Galit. The first time I heard of this story was this week.