Israeli Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked announced on Sunday that bodies of Palestinians killed by Israeli occupation forces would not be returned to their families for burial, Quds Press reported.
“It must be clear that the bodies of terrorists will not be returned,” Shaked told journalists yesterday, in reference to Palestinians killed at the hands of Israeli occupation forces.
Palestinians petition Israeli Supreme Court to return bodies of slain family members https://t.co/g3ApvVQlhg
— Ben White (@benabyad) September 19, 2017
“There can be two tracks of going about it, as I said, either another discussion, which is the preferred route, or legislation.”
On Thursday, the Israel Supreme Court ruled that the state is not allowed to hold bodies of Palestinians to be used as “bargaining chips”.
New law to allow Israel Police to block return of slain Palestinians https://t.co/Ud3QAk0CyH
— Middle East Monitor (@MiddleEastMnt) November 13, 2017
Based on the ruling, the Israeli government was given a period of six months to appeal before it must release the bodies of slain Palestinians unconditionally.
Israeli occupation forces have withheld the bodies of hundreds of Palestinians, including ten killed during the uprising which started in October 2015. It is believed that they will be used in future negotiations surrounding the release of Israeli soldiers who have been captured as prisoners of war in the besieged Gaza Strip.
Today's #WaveOfPrayer from @SabeelJerusalem: Prayers for slain #Palestinians whose bodies have not been returned to their families, for Palestinian independence, against settlements and evictions, and more… https://t.co/7A5X74Py2K pic.twitter.com/J3vOhgUW1Q
— Friends of Sabeel NA (@fosnalive) November 16, 2017
The bodies of the Palestinians are held in the cemetery of numbers which is a closed military area which civilians and NGOs are unable to access.
(MEMO, PC, Social Media)
