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Rabat — Gaza has become “the world’s largest mass graveyard,” Palestinian officials warned Thursday, as they called on the international community to send specialized teams to recover thousands of bodies still buried under homes destroyed by Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF).
Around 10,000 Palestinians remain missing beneath the rubble, Alaa Al Din Al Akluk, spokesperson for the Committee for Missing Persons in Gaza, told a press conference in Gaza.
“These martyrs lie buried under their homes, which became mass graves, without preserving their final dignity or recovering their bodies,” Al Akluk said.
The committee expressed shock at what it called the failure of international organizations and humanitarian bodies to address the crisis. Al Akluk pointed to what he described as a clear double standard in how the world treats Palestinian victims compared to Israeli casualties.
“We have witnessed, with great pain, the international community’s double standards in dealing with Palestinian victims’ bodies, compared to the attention different parties showed in recovering Israeli captives’ remains,” he said. “This reflects profound injustice and clear bias against Gaza’s victims.”
The committee called on Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to activate all political, legal, and logistical channels to pressure for action on the missing persons file and support their families.
Al Akluk demanded that the international community send specialized teams with heavy equipment and detection technology to locate bodies under the rubble. He also called for DNA testing to identify victims and prevent them from remaining listed as “missing persons of unknown identity.”
Israel blocks the entry of heavy equipment and machinery needed to lift rubble and recover Palestinian bodies. Ismail Al Thawabta, director general of the Government Media Office, previously told Anadolu that Israel’s ban violates the humanitarian protocol in the ceasefire agreement, which allows hundreds of such vehicles to enter.
The appeals come as Israel races to recover the remains of its captives in Gaza. Hamas has worked to search for and recover these remains from under the rubble as part of its ceasefire commitments.
Over a week ago, Israel allowed some equipment to enter to search for its captives’ remains, according to Israeli media, while showing no concern for thousands of Palestinian bodies under the rubble.
Gaza’s Ministry of Health announced it has recovered around 513 bodies of Palestinians killed in the streets and roads since October 11.
Israel’s genocide on Gaza has killed at least 68,875 Palestinians and injured 170,679 since October 2023.
