Families of dozens of Palestinian young men killed by Israeli bullet fire continue to rally for weeks running urging the Israeli occupation authorities to release the withheld bodies of their relatives.
“We Want our Children’s Bodies Back” was the motto that figured all the way through the peaceful vigil.
The father of slain Wael al-Ju’bari said the campaign dovetails efforts launched some three years ago to demand the release of dead bodies.
The body of Abdul Hamid Abu Surur aged 19 along with those of dozens of Palestinian youths killed by the Israeli occupation forces have been held by the occupation authorities for months in response to alleged anti-occupation attacks carried out by the casualties.
Wael al-Ju’bari whose body has not been released yet was killed by Israeli soldiers outside of his family home in the presence of his daughter on allegations of an attempted anti-occupation stabbing attack. His relatives said he was killed as he headed for a grocery to purchase foodstuff for his child.
The families urged all the concerned human rights bodies among them the International Red Cross to pressurize the Israeli occupation in order to hand them over their relatives’ bodies so as to bid them last farewell and lay them to rest.
The families lifted banners condemning Israel’s confiscation of dead bodies which is an internationally-prohibited crime and called for the Israeli war criminals to be prosecuted over their unabated terrorism and simmering violations of the international humanitarian law.
The bodies of at least 253 slain Palestinians are secretly held by the Israeli occupation authorities in the so-called Cemetery of Numbers. The condition and whereabouts of 68 other bodies remain shrouded in mystery. The bodies of 33 Palestinians have meanwhile been crammed in Israeli refrigerators.
