One of the critical issues jeopardizing the fragile Gaza ceasefire is the matter of exchanging deceased individuals. The agreement involves Hamas releasing 28 Israeli hostages’ bodies in return for the remains of 360 alleged Gazan fighters. Israel accuses Hamas of delaying the process to maintain leverage, while Hamas attributes the delays to the extensive damage caused by Israeli military actions. Doctors in Gaza have reported that some bodies received from Israel lacked proper identification, with many showing signs of torture and some having bound hands. This practice of withholding bodies for negotiation purposes is a recurring strategy in the Israeli-Hamas conflict, not limited to the current Gaza situation.
Human rights organizations say Israel has been stockpiling the bodies of hundreds of alleged Palestinian militants for years, often burying them in a so-called cemetery of numbers — something Palestinians consider a form of collective punishment. For The National, CBC’s Margaret Evans goes to the region to learn more about why it happens, and meets people fighting for change.
‘Cemeteries of numbers’
Human rights groups claim that Israel has been holding the bodies of hundreds of suspected Palestinian militants as potential bargaining tools for years, interring them in clandestine burial sites referred to as “cemeteries of numbers.” Hussein Shejaeya, leading a campaign for their release by the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Centre, stated that there are documented cases of 735 missing bodies in these cemeteries and morgues in Israel. Palestinians use the term “cemeteries of numbers” because the graves are marked solely with numerical identifiers.
Shejaeya mentioned that Israel held 405 Palestinian bodies before the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks, and has added at least 330 more since then, excluding Gazans. Reports suggest that Israel might be holding up to 1,500 Gazan bodies in various morgues across the country. Retrieving bodies becomes challenging once they are buried, requiring a complex legal process.
Necessary strategy, says Israel
Israel has justified this practice as essential due to its location in a hostile region.