See new photos of the first-ever surviving nonuplets

Kait Hanson
Updated ·2 min read
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The record-setting nonuplets (yes, that is nine babies born at once) have returned home to Mali from Morocco, where they spent the first 19 months of their life.

In a Dec. 19 update from Guinness World Records, the family offered a glimpse into their life — as well as adorable new family photos.

“It’s not easy to put them to sleep all together," their mother, Halima Cissé, told Guinness World Records. "We cuddle them so they can sleep; they really like cuddles to sleep."

Mom Halima Cissé and dad Abdelkader Arby are pictured with all nine toddlers, who were born on were born May 4, 2021. (Guinness World Records)
Mom Halima Cissé and dad Abdelkader Arby are pictured with all nine toddlers, who were born on were born May 4, 2021. (Guinness World Records)

Cissé and the babies' father, Abdelkader Arby, had traveled to Morocco from Mali to seek specialized medical care.

In July 2021, Dr. Youssef Alaoui, the director of the private clinic in Morocco where Cissé gave birth, told TODAY.com in an exclusive email interview that his goal was simple: to keep mom and babies safe.

From the time of Cissé’s arrival, Alaoui said he and his team were able to extend her pregnancy five weeks before she delivered at 30 weeks.

“We thank the medical corps of Mali and the Akdital group for accompanying us during our stay here in Morocco. And the nurses who accompanied us morning, noon and evening continuously,” Cissé told Guinness World Records.

On May 4, 2021, then 25-year-old Cissé gave birth to nine babies — five girls and four boys — named Mohammed VI, Oumar, Elhadji, Bah, Kadidia, Fatouma, Hawa, Adama and Oumou.

Guinness World Records reported that “each baby weighed between 0.5 — 1 kg (1.1 — 2.2 lb).”

The nonuplets include five girls and four boys — Mohammed VI, Oumar, Elhadji, Bah, Kadidia, Fatouma, Hawa, Adama and Oumou. (Guinness World Records)
The nonuplets include five girls and four boys — Mohammed VI, Oumar, Elhadji, Bah, Kadidia, Fatouma, Hawa, Adama and Oumou. (Guinness World Records)

At birth, the nonuplets achieved the Guinness World Records title for “the most children delivered at a single birth to survive,” replacing Natalie (Nadya) Suleman, a.k.a. “Octomom,” who in 2009 gave birth to eight children (octuplets). While still in Morocco, Arby was presented with the record-holding certificate.

Cissé had been expecting seven babies, but doctors in Morocco discovered two more.

“We started with seven, and Allah blessed us with nine,” Arby told Guinness World Records.

Now 19 months old, the nonuplets are on the move. (Guinness World Records)
Now 19 months old, the nonuplets are on the move. (Guinness World Records)

According to the outlet, Cissé and Arby are also parents to a daughter named Souda, who is 4.

"We are proud, it’s something exceptional," Arby told Guinness World Records. "The family is known worldwide, it’s a great thing.”

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This article was originally published on TODAY.com