Detained Bodies
I watched, with many Americans on our TV screens the “dignified transfer” of the bodies of the 13 soldiers who died in the airport attack in Kabul. Regardless of what one believes about the US policies in Afghanistan, and where one stands on the political issues surrounding the US involvement there for 20 years, or the decision and manner of the withdrawal, this was a difficult moment. It was a sobering sight, reminding everyone of the horrors of war, and the pain inflicted on families of loved ones who are killed, and their need for sympathy, empathy and closure.
As I watched, I could not help but remember the families of Palestinian men and women, killed by Israeli forces, whose bodies are kept for days and months, exacerbating the pain of the families, and denying them the closure of a dignified burial. I am a pacifist, and a firm believer in nonviolence, but regardless of anything these martyrs allegedly did, the practice of withholding their bodies from a decent burial by their families is painful and cruel.
According to the Jerusalem Center for Legal Aid and Human Rights, Israel currently holds the bodies of 335 Palestinians killed while allegedly being involved in attacking Israeli soldiers or settlers. Some are buried in secret army cemetery, but 81 are kept in freezers at a morgue, while their families beg and plead for the bodies to be released to them for decent burial. The Israeli High Court recently approved this practice. The latest of these are the bodies of two youth from Jenin, Noureddin Jarar, and Amjad Husseinieh, killed on August 16 this year. The longest held is the body of Abdel Hamid Abu Srouh, held since 4/8/2016. They include the bodies of 6 minors, and two ladies, including the body of Mai Affaneh, who was killed on the 16 th of June this year while allegedly trying to stab a soldier.
This practice is clearly against international law, and patently inhuman. Israel is the only country in the world, to my knowledge, that permits this practice It was allegedly started to create “bargaining chips” to negotiate with Hamas in Gaza but after a Cabinet Decision in 2015, has now become a standard practice. Maybe the justification is that it creates an additional deterrence by increasing the pain on the families, as in house demolitions, another patently illegal form of collective punishment.
The real basis for it however is the racist attempt to rob Palestinians of their humanity. At its root, this practice treats Palestinians as less than human, devoid of the most basic traits we associate with families and relatives of those who die, regardless of the circumstances of their death, and unworthy of basic sympathy and humanity.
As Christians, we firmly assert the humanity, worth, and dignity of all humans regardless of race, ethnicity, or religion. It is a firm extension of our faith in God, and in the value of humans he created in His Own image. It is for this reason that we affirm equality, and oppose racism, Islamophobia, antisemitism, and discrimination. That is a core value we insist on defending. It goes beyond politics and partisanship, and we call on everyone, including those who disagree with us politically to defend these values.
FOSNA will be soon launching a campaign for religious leaders to speak out against this inhuman practice, and we will update you about it.