International Committee of the Red Cross Archives

‘Dignifying Martyrs’ Aims to Recover Bodies From The Rubble

CrossFireArabia
February 15, 2026

Palestinian civil defense crews in Gaza launched a campaign, Sunday, to recover the bodies of Palestinians killed during Israel’s genocidal war and still trapped under the rubble of their homes in northern Gaza.

The initiative, titled “Dignifying the Martyrs,” began in the town of Beit Lahia, where rescue teams started retrieving remains from the destroyed home of the Abu Nasr family. The house was hit in an Israeli airstrike on Oct. 29, 2024, when it was sheltering about 200 family members and displaced people.

According to official estimates in Gaza, around 9,500 Palestinians remain missing under the rubble, as rescue teams struggle to reach them amid widespread destruction and a lack of heavy equipment.

The campaign “marks the start of broader efforts to recover victims from multiple sites across northern Gaza,” said Mohammed Tamous, an officer with the civil defense, adding that the first phase focuses on homes believed to contain large numbers of bodies.

“We are standing today on the rubble of the Abu Nasr family home, and dozens of bodies are still inside,” Tamous said. “We hope to continue the campaign until all the martyrs are recovered from across the Gaza Strip.”

He said thousands remain buried under debris, while the civil defense lacks sufficient bulldozers and machinery to carry out large-scale recovery operations. One of the vehicles currently in use was provided by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), he added, calling on humanitarian organizations to supply additional equipment.

Aya Abu Nasr, a survivor of the strike, said her extended family had sought refuge in the five-story building as Israeli attacks intensified. About 200 people were inside when it was hit.

She told Anadolu that roughly 150 people were killed in the strike, with dozens more injured, while others remained trapped under the rubble.

Initial recovery attempts during Israeli bombardment were “limited and dangerous,” she said.

“Some bodies were retrieved, but those in the lower floors could not be reached,” Abu Nasr said. “More than a year later, the family is still waiting to recover the remains of those still buried to bury them properly.”

Holding up photos on her phone, she said her brother Mohammed is still missing, expressing hope that his body will be found.

Civil defense personnel have been operating in hazardous health conditions since the start of the Israeli war, with decomposing bodies in exposed areas and limited access to protective gear and biological testing tools.

The Israeli restrictions and blockade on the entry of essential medical supplies have further complicated their work, leaving rescue workers vulnerable to disease and infection during recovery operations.

Gaza’s Health Ministry said Sunday that 726 bodies have been recovered since the Oct. 10 ceasefire deal with Israel.

The ceasefire ended Israel’s two-year war that began on Oct. 8, 2023. Palestinian authorities say the conflict killed more than 72,000 Palestinians, wounded over 171,000 others, and caused widespread destruction affecting 90% of civilian infrastructure. The UN estimates reconstruction costs at approximately $70 billion.

At least 601 Palestinians have been killed and over 1,600 others injured in Israeli attacks since the ceasefire, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. Anadolu News Agency

Features

An Israeli Obsession: Digging Up Graves in Gaza

CrossFireArabia
February 1, 2026

The large-scale exhumation operations by the Israeli army east of Gaza City, under the pretext of searching for the body of the last Israeli captive in the Gaza Strip, are deeply alarming.

Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor stresses that this pretext does not grant legitimacy to violating the sanctity of the Palestinian dead, tampering with their graves, or desecrating their remains. Any search operations must be strictly limited in scope, subject to stringent humanitarian safeguards, and conducted under neutral international supervision.

Over the past two years, Israel has systematically destroyed cemeteries in the Gaza Strip, dug up and vandalised graves, tampered with bodies, and transferred dozens of remains.

Euro-Med Monitor has reviewed documented reports indicating that the Israeli army dug up nearly 200 graves in a cemetery in the Shuja’iyya neighbourhood near the Yellow Line. The operations are reportedly ongoing, with no independent information or neutral verification as to whether examinations are being conducted on site or whether bodies are being removed or transferred elsewhere. This significantly heightens the risk of serious violations and undermines any claim of necessity or restraint, particularly given Israel’s documented pattern of destroying, bulldozing, tampering with, and snatching bodies from cemeteries in Gaza.

The expansion of exhumations in the absence of any Palestinian or neutral international presence, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, risks exceeding the stated purpose of searching for a specific body and significantly increases the likelihood of violating the sanctity of cemeteries and the remains of the dead, including through the transfer or tampering of remains without traceable records.

Such practices not only violate the dignity of the deceased but also inflict severe psychological harm on their families by leaving them in uncertainty about the fate and burial sites of their loved ones, denying them verification or official information, and amounting to cruel treatment and psychological torture of the families of the deceased.

The Israeli army has destroyed 21 out of 60 cemeteries in the Gaza Strip over the past two years and has systematically vandalised cemeteries and exhumed graves in all areas where it conducted ground incursions. These actions included bulldozing graves, extracting remains, and crushing them with military machinery, repeatedly causing the mixing, loss, and disappearance of remains, as well as damage to neighbouring graves.

On 25 December 2024, Euro-Med Monitor received multiple testimonies regarding the Israeli army’s bulldozing of the Beit Hanoun Cemetery in northern Gaza. Documented excavations in specific graves included the removal and snatching of recently buried bodies, as well as the mixing of remains to the point that identification became impossible. Between 17 and 20 December 2024, the Israeli army stormed the Sheikh Shaban Cemetery in Gaza City, bulldozed dozens of graves, and ran over the bodies of the dead.

On 20 December 2024, Euro-Med Monitor documented extensive destruction and vandalism by the Israeli army in a cemetery approximately 1.7 kilometres east of central Khan Younis in southern Gaza, including the exhumation of graves across an area of about 2,500 square metres. Earlier that month, the Israeli army stormed the Al-Faluja Cemetery in Jabalia, northern Gaza, causing widespread destruction, including damage to graves and headstones and the confiscation of several bodies.

The attacks also targeted the Ali Ibn Marwan Cemetery, Sheikh Radwan Cemetery, Al Shuhada’ Eastern Cemetery, the Tunisian Cemetery, and the Cemetery of St. Porphyrius Church, all located in Gaza City and its northern areas. The central Khan Younis Cemetery in the Austrian neighbourhood was also targeted, destroying dozens of graves, creating large pits that swallowed graves, mixing and disappearing of remains, damaging adjacent graves, and violating the dignity of the dead.

Based on Euro-Med Monitor documentation over recent months, Israel is systematically violating the sanctity of the dead and cemeteries in clear breach of international humanitarian law and the rules of war, which require the protection of cemeteries during armed conflicts, the respectful treatment of the dead, and the preservation of graves, and prohibit their desecration or tampering.

Any Israeli search operations for the body of the last Israeli captive in the Gaza Strip do not justify violating the sanctity of Palestinian dead or exhuming Palestinian graves. The respect for the dignity of the dead is an obligation without discrimination, and tampering with remains or burial sites, or desecrating cemeteries, is prohibited.

International humanitarian law prohibits the snatching of dead bodies and affirms that degrading treatment and attacks on dignity, including that of the dead, constitute a war crime under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

An immediate halt to all grave exhumation and bulldozing operations is required, along with refraining from any unilateral search measures and ensuring that any claimed search operations are subject to strict, written, and public constraints that precisely define their scope with minimal interference. Euro-Med Monitor calls for the presence of a neutral competent body, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, to thoroughly document every grave opening, including the identification and coordinates of targeted graves, prevent the transfer of any remains outside the Gaza Strip, ensure reburial at the same site without alteration, and rehabilitate damaged cemeteries in a manner that preserves the dignity of the dead and the rights of their families.

Euro-Med Monitor stresses the need for the International Criminal Court and relevant UN investigative mechanisms to fulfil their role in investigating the systematic destruction of Palestinian cemeteries and the snatching of bodies as part of broader files on crimes committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip, to ensure accountability, prevent impunity, and uphold the dignity of the dead.

News

Hamas Releases US-Israeli Hostage

CrossFireArabia
May 12, 2025

The International Committee of the Red Cross received Israeli-American soldier Idan Alexander from Hamas on Monday evening. His family confirmed he would travel to Doha later in May to meet President Trump and Qatar’s Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

Hamas had captured Alexander in Gaza during the war as he served in the Israeli military. The release followed direct talks between Hamas and the U.S., and came as part of broader efforts to secure a ceasefire, open border crossings, and allow humanitarian aid into Gaza.

The handover took place in Khan Younis in southern Gaza. The Israeli military confirmed it received Alexander and said he is in good health.

Hamas said it released Alexander after “important talks” with the U.S. and praised the American administration’s efforts. The resistance movement emphasized that serious and responsible negotiations produce results in freeing prisoners. Continued military aggression, they warned, only prolongs prisoners’ suffering and risks killing them.

Hamas declared its readiness to begin immediate negotiations for a permanent ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, lifting the blockade on Gaza, a prisoner exchange deal, and reconstruction of the war-torn enclave. It also called on U.S. President Donald Trump to intensify efforts to end “Netanyahu’s brutal war against children, women, and unarmed civilians in Gaza.”

Earlier Monday, Israeli media reported full preparations were in place to receive Alexander. His family confirmed he would travel to Doha later in May to meet President Trump and Qatar’s Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

Channel 12 said the Israeli army received orders to halt fire in Gaza from midday to ensure a smooth handover. A military helicopter brought Alexander’s family to the Re’im base near the Gaza border to await his release.

Meanwhile, hundreds of Israelis demonstrated outside the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, demanding the release of all Israeli prisoners.

Earlier in the day, Abu Obeida, spokesperson for Hamas’s military wing, said on Telegram that the group had decided to free Alexander. The 21-year-old soldier, originally from New Jersey, had served in the Israeli army and became the 39th prisoner released by Hamas since January 19, when a temporary ceasefire was reached. That deal later collapsed in March when Israel resumed its offensive.

U.S. Middle East envoy Steven Witkoff arrived in Israel for the release. Adam Boehler, the U.S. envoy for hostage affairs, posted a photo from the plane flying him and Alexander’s mother to Israel to receive the soldier.

Boehler praised Hamas’s decision and called for the return of the remains of four other U.S. citizens reportedly killed and still in Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office issued a statement saying Israel remains committed only to securing a safe corridor for Alexander’s release—not to a broader ceasefire or exchange. Talks for other Israeli prisoners, they added, will continue while Israel prepares to intensify attacks.

Netanyahu claimed Alexander’s release came without concessions, crediting U.S. support and Israeli military pressure. “We are in critical days,” he said, “and Hamas now has a deal on the table that could lead to the return of our captives.”

Haaretz quoted a senior Israeli source saying Israel demands that Hamas release at least half of the Israeli prisoners—dead or alive—before it enters full negotiations to end the genocide.

The Times of Israel reported that Hamas had received assurances from a mediator that releasing Alexander would improve their standing with Trump. The resistance movement reportedly hopes the move will encourage the U.S. president to pressure Netanyahu into accepting a broader deal according to the Quds News Network.

Features

Probing Israel’s Sexual Violence is a Long Road to Hell!

CrossFireArabia
January 12, 2025

Israel’s consistent obstructions of all United Nations investigations into allegations of sexual violence since 7 October 2023 is profoundly concerning. These obstructions, coupled with substantial evidence indicating systematic and widespread acts of rape and other forms of sexual violence by Israeli forces against Palestinians, including prisoners and detainees, constitute grave violations of international humanitarian and human rights law. The grounds for the inclusion of Israel on the UN’s blacklist of entities suspected of perpetrating sexual violence in conflicts are compelling.

For the past 15 months, Israel has consistently refused to cooperate with all United Nations bodies with an investigative mandate to examine allegations of rape and other forms of sexual violence arising from the attacks of 7 October.

It was disclosed last Wednesday that Israel has once again denied authorisation for an investigation by the UN Special Representative on Conflict-Related Sexual Violence, Pramila Patten. This refusal reportedly stems from concerns that a comprehensive investigation would expose Israel’s systematic use of mass rape against Palestinians, including women and children, as Patten had insisted that access to Israeli detention centres to investigate allegations against Israeli soldiers was a crucial requirement for the process.

Israel’s refusal is particularly striking given that Israeli civil society, until recently, held a generally favourable view of Patten, and even called on her to revisit Israel.

Patten’s earlier report, published on 11 March 2024, marks the only instance in which the Israeli government has provided information to a UN inquiry into allegations of sexual violence. However, as clearly stated in the report, the mission’s mandate at that time was not investigative. The report recommended that the Israeli government cooperate with the Independent International Commission of Inquiry (CoI) on the Occupied Palestinian Territory (oPt), including East Jerusalem and Israel, as well as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), to facilitate comprehensive investigations into all alleged violations, especially after Israel denied these entities access and cooperation, as highlighted in the report.

The Israeli obstruction of truth in this context was first evidenced in January 2024, when the Israeli government expressly prohibited Israeli doctors and relevant authorities from cooperating with the UN Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, labeling the commission as “anti-Israeli and antisemitic”. Since then, the Israeli government has persistently maintained this obstructive stance, undermining the Commission’s efforts to conduct a thorough and impartial investigation, which constitutes a failure by Israel to comply with its obligation under international law to cooperate with UN bodies. Israeli is also denying victims on both sides their right to justice and accountability for the alleged violations.

“Israel’s repeated refusal to cooperate with all UN investigations into sexual violence highlights the Israeli government’s exploitation of the allegations of this grave crime as a propaganda tool to manufacture consent for its full-fledged, live-streamed genocide,” said Ramy Abdu, Chairman of Euro-Med Monitor. “Israel merely uses these allegations to shame and smear critics and deflect blame from its formidable crimes against humanity.”

Over the past 15 months, the Euro-Med Monitor team has documented numerous instances of Israeli-perpetrated sexual violence, including rape and other forms of sexualised torture, against Palestinian civilians, including individuals abducted to Israel’s Sde Teiman torture camp.

In at least one instance, a Palestinian detainee was subjected to rape by Israeli police dogs as part of their assault. In Sde Teiman, “the soldiers took off the blindfolds covering our eyes for the first time,” lawyer Fadi Saif al-Din Bakr, released on 22 February 2024 after 45 days of detention, told the Euro-Med Monitor team. “The soldiers later pulled a young man sitting to my right, forced him to sleep on the ground, and tied his hands and feet. Suddenly, the occupation soldiers let loose trained police dogs on the young man, who was subjected to rape by the dogs. Throughout the entire ordeal I endured, this was among the most awful things that I witnessed.”

Added al-Din Bakr: “Everything was a lot [to go through], and this was just one more [incident] added to the heap of torments. I was hoping to die so that this would not happen to me, but one of the soldiers told me to get ready. [Yet] something miraculous happened in the prison; the torture session quickly ended, and we were brought back to the barn.”

In some cases, Palestinians have been raped to death by Israeli army personnel. These documented incidents provide strong evidence of the systematic and widespread nature of such atrocities, revealing that Israel has weaponised sexual violence as a deliberate tactic to destroy the Palestinian population’s morale.

Among the at least 36 detainee deaths under investigation at Israel’s notorious Sde Teiman detention facility, one Palestinian man is reported to have died following a horrific act of rape with an electric baton. This brutal act, along with many others, is unlikely to be investigated or prosecuted within Israel, and will be prevented from international scrutiny as Israel continues to block investigations into such crimes.

Numerous reports from international, UN, and Israeli human rights organisations, including the UN Human Rights Office, Amnesty International, and B’Tselem, have documented Israel’s systematic and widespread use of torture and sexual violence against Palestinians.

In addition, the June 2024 report by the UN CoI on the oPt, including East Jerusalem and Israel reached similar conclusions. It documented a “significant increase in the range, frequency, and severity of sexual and gender-based violence perpetrated by Israeli Security Forces (ISF) against Palestinians” since 7 October 2023. The report further stated that this increase was “linked to an intent to punish and humiliate Palestinians”.

Recently, the Euro-Med Monitor team documented horrific testimonies at Kamal Adwan Hospital regarding the sexual assault of civilians, including female medical staff and children. The victims were forced to remove their clothes and headscarves and subjected to humiliating body searches by male Israeli army personnel. One woman, forcibly evacuated from the hospital, recounted to the Euro-Med Monitor team: “A soldier forced a nurse to remove her trousers and then placed his hand on her genitals. When she tried to resist, he struck her hard across the face, causing her nose to bleed.”

The Israeli crimes involving the killing of Palestinians and the infliction of severe physical and psychological harm through torture, mistreatment, and sexual violence, including rape, are being carried out with extreme brutality and in a systematic nature that is clearly indicative of a specific intent to destroy the Palestinian people. These acts constitute components of the crime of genocide, as outlined in the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.

Euro-Med Monitor calls on the United Nations to include Israel on its blacklist of entities involved in sexual violence in conflicts. This call comes in light of substantial evidence documenting Israel’s systematic use of sexual violence, including rape and other forms of sexual abuse, as part of its broader campaign of annihilation against the Palestinian people.

Euro-Med Monitor emphasises the urgent need for international accountability and a comprehensive investigation into these atrocities to ensure justice for the victims and prevent further impunity. The Monitor affirmed that, over the course of several decades, Israel has consistently demonstrated both a lack of willingness and a lack of capacity to hold accountable or prosecute those implicated in crimes committed against Palestinians, with such individuals afforded judicial, political, military, and even popular protection.

The international community must take urgent and decisive action to address and halt Israel’s grave crimes against Palestinian prisoners and detainees. This includes the immediate and unconditional release of individuals being arbitrarily detained, the cessation of enforced disappearances that facilitate further atrocities, and the granting of access for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and other competent local and international organisations to all Israeli detention facilities. Additionally, victims must be granted the right to legal representation.

Euro-Med Monitor further demands that these crimes be investigated promptly, impartially, thoroughly, and independently, in order for all perpetrators to be held accountable, and that all victims and their families be fully granted their right to truth, to effective remedies, and to comprehensive reparations, ensuring justice and dignity for those affected by these heinous crimes.

It is imperative that the international community support the International Criminal Court (ICC) in conducting a comprehensive investigation into these crimes, as well as ensuring their incorporation into the charges brought against Israeli officials before the Court, and ensure the accountability and prosecution of all those responsible for it.

Euromed Human Rights Monitor