Four-year-old Haider has left Malta with his father to be reunited with his only surviving brother in Agrigento, three weeks after he lost his mother and two other siblings off Lampedusa.

The boy formed part of a group of four families from Syria who were yesterday flown to Sicily to meet their children who were taken to Lampedusa when they were rescued on October 11.

More than 50 people, and possibly up to 200, drowned in the incident in which the armed forces managed to rescue 143 migrants. The Italian navy saved another 56.

Clinging to his father’s hand on their way to the check-in desk at Malta International Airport, Haider waved at passers-by as the media gathered for the group’s send-off.

His father Hatim Shabar looked nervous, saying that although he had been shown a photo of seven-year-old Abdul Karim, he would not be at peace until he saw him and hugged him.

We are confused and I think until we touch with our own hands and see with our own eyes, we will not be at peace

Mr Shabar has been shown another photo of the body of his two-year-old son, while his fourth son and wife are still missing.

He expressed hope that once in Sicily he would be able to pursue his search for them. Even if they were dead, being able to identify their bodies would give him closure, he told this newspaper.

Mr Shabar left Idlib in Syria for Aleppo 18 months ago and then headed to Cairo before making it to Libya and finally to Malta.

Like him, eager to board the plane that will take them to their three children in Sicily, Nagat Nassar and Ahmad Ali still cannot believe they will finally be reunited. It will only “truly sink in” when they finally meet, they said.

The family left Yarmouk in Damascus two years ago but when they were rescued, their three-year-old twins and 10-month son were taken to Lampedusa while the couple was brought to Malta.

Standing behind them in the line at check-in, Mohamed el Haji cannot wait until he too meets his two-year-old son and pursues his search for his missing wife in Sicily.

“We are confused and I think until we touch with our own hands and see with our own eyes, we will not be at peace,” he said.

Home Affairs Minister Manuel Mallia was at the airport to bid the families farewell, urging them to look forward to a better future.

He said the Government was paying for their travel expenses and the process was under way to identify and reunite other families.

DNA tests have been carried out to confirm the claims by the parents, while passports and documents were issued by the Maltese authorities so that those in Malta could travel to Italy.

Meanwhile, Ahmed Khalid, who was rescued off Lampedusa last month and feared he had lost his wife and seven children, was not with the group that left for Lampedusa yesterday. On Sunday he questioned why he had still not been reunited with his two surviving daughters, who were taken to Italy. The ministry is still trying to unite other separated families after proving links through documents, DNA and other means.

A funeral will be held tomorrow for two children who died in the tragedy.