Protests in Ramallah Demand Israel Hand over the Bodies of Dozens of Palestinians

Ramallah, MINA – Hundreds of Palestinians gathered in Ramallah demanding that the Israeli authorities hand over the bodies of dozens of Palestinians killed by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) several years ago.

The march was initiated and called by the families of the Palestinian martyrs whose bodies were detained by the occupying authorities, Wafa reported on Sunday.

The demonstrators chanted slogans and waved banners demanding the immediate surrender of the martyrs whose bodies were kept in Israeli morgues.

Layla Ghannam, governor of Ramallah, addressed the protesters saying the international community should hold Israel accountable for holding the bodies of slain Palestinians and portraying it as a means of collective punishment.

The Israeli occupation authorities have stepped up their practice of detaining the bodies of Palestinians killed by IOF, claiming that Palestinian burials provide grounds for “incitement” against Israel.

International law considers the practice a violation of human rights and the Geneva Convention says parties to an armed conflict must bury the dead in an honorable manner.

According to rights groups, the bodies of Palestinians detained by Israel have stood at 105 people since 2015.

In 2017, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled the state had no legal basis for detaining bodies, but that changed in 2019.

According to the Is Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights, Israel is the only country in the world that has the authority to confiscate human remains under regulations dating back to 1945 (during the British Mandate) as the basis for its establishment. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)