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Mass graves found during the Israel–Hamas War From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
During the Israel–Hamas war, mass graves have been widely used in the Gaza Strip by Palestinians, with the courtyards of many hospitals converted.[1]
This article may be unbalanced toward certain viewpoints. (May 2024) |
In April 2024, mass graves were discovered in the Gaza Strip during the Israel–Hamas war. Such graves were found in two large hospitals, Nasser Hospital and Al-Shifa Hospital, both of which were raided by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). Mass graves had previously been established in the courtyards of both hospitals, and according to independent analysis the grave found in Nasser hospital was in the same location as one established by Palestinians months previously.[2][3] Graves were also found in Beit Lahia, and used in Deir al-Balah.[4] More than 300 bodies have been found as of 24 April 2024.[5][6][7] By 11 May 2024, the number had risen to 520, per the Gaza Ministry of Health.[8] As of May 31 2024, seven mass graves in Gaza had been discovered.[9]
The discovery has caused international concern over potential war crimes and calls for an investigation, including by the United Nations (UN).[10][11][12] Several officials at the UN have cited reports that an unspecified amount of the bodies found had their hands tied.[13][14][15]
The IDF said the accusations of them causing the killings were "baseless and unfounded."[16] The IDF said that during its operation "in the area of Nasser Hospital, in accordance to the effort to locate hostages and missing persons, corpses buried by Palestinians in the area of Nasser Hospital were examined."[17] They further stated that "Bodies examined, which did not belong to Israeli hostages, were returned to their place."[17][18]
Since the start of the Israel–Hamas war, Israel has attacked, damaged or destroyed nearly every hospital in the Gaza Strip.[19] In January 2024, the Gazan health ministry said that 40 bodies were buried inside the hospital due to "the siege on the neighbourhoods close to Nasser Hospital".[20] A Nasser hospital official had told journalists in January that hospital staff had buried around 150 bodies in the hospital's yard.[21]
The hospital was shelled multiple times throughout the war and received significant international media coverage after the death of a 13-year-old amputee, Donia Abu Mohsen, who had survived a previous Israeli airstrike that had killed her entire family.[22][23][24] Nasser Hospital was reported to be non-functional after a February Israeli raid.[25]
Israeli soldiers entered the hospital on 15 February 2024 from the south; according to a spokesman for the Gaza Health Ministry they destroyed tents and bulldozed a mass grave.[26][27][28] Israel stated it exhumed and examined some 400 corpses looking for Israeli hostages.[29][a]
Due to power outages during the entry of Israeli soldiers into the hospital, five patients in the hospital died.[31] On 18 February, the World Health Organization said the hospital could no longer serve its patients, and that the hospital was no longer functional.[32] Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus attributed the hospital's inability to continue operating to the Israeli siege and raid.[32]
Palestine Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qadra claimed that dozens of bodies exhumed from mass graves had been beheaded and their organs and skins removed from mass graves at Nasser Hospital.[33]
According to paramedics and rescue teams involved in the recovery of the bodies, some bodies were found with hands tied, indicating possible execution. Other victims were found with bullet marks on their heads, raising suspicions of summary executions. There are also reports of torture marks on the bodies.[34][35]
According to Palestinian government-run news agency Wafa, some bodies were found suspicious of organ theft with their stomachs open and stitched up, contrary to the usual wound closure techniques in the Gaza Strip. The mutilated body of a little girl wearing a surgical gown was also found, prompting suspicions that she had been buried alive.[34]
By January 2024, many hospital courtyards had been converted to mass graves;[1] according to Euro-Med HRM by December 2023 there were more than 120 mass graves within the strip.[36]
According to reports from January and February 2024, staff and civilians at the Nasser Hospital "had felt compelled" to bury casualties in the hospital courtyard due to a lack of access to cemeteries because of fighting.[37][2]
In April 2024, following the withdrawal of Israeli forces, over 300 bodies of young men, women, and children were unearthed at the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, Gaza, after Israeli military withdrawal. According to Colonel Yamen Abu Suleiman the bodies exhibited signs of having been bound and potentially executed in the field. Reports indicate that two other mass graves have been identified, but have yet to be excavated.[38][39][40]
According to a report by France24, based on analysis of photographs and video, the location of the exhumations is around the same area as the earlier mass burials, but there is no way to verify how many bodies were buried there prior to the Israeli withdrawal in April 2024.[2] Geoconfirmed presented a similar analysis, saying that the exhumations took place at the same location as the earlier mass burials conducted by Palestinians, although they didn't exclude the possibility that the graves had been added to by Israeli forces.[3]
On 14 November 2023, officials at Al-Shifa hospital announced that to date they had buried 179 bodies in a mass grave in the courtyard of the hospital.[41][42] A week later, Palestinians buried dozens of unidentified bodies taken from Al-Shifa hopistal and the Indonesian hospital in a mass grave in Khan Yunis.[43]
In April 2024, health workers in Gaza exhumed the first bodies from mass graves at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, where, according to a Gaza Civil Defense spokesperson, at least 381 bodies were found after the withdrawal of Israeli forces, not including persons buried within the hospital grounds. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), stated that "Among the deceased were allegedly older people, women, and the wounded, while others were found tied and stripped of their clothes."[44][45][46]
On 8 May, the Gaza Media Office stated a third mass grave had been found at al-Shifa, with some of the bodies found without heads, raising concerns about possible wars crimes.[47] In a statement, the director of the Gaza Emergency Operations Centre said, "The bodies we found were on beds at the reception and emergency department, meaning Israel destroyed the department over the heads of sick and injured people – and they were buried alive."[48]
A mass grave has been discovered on the grounds of a school in Beit Lahiya, in the northern Gaza Strip. The bodies of 30 Palestinians were reportedly found in body bags, blindfolded and their hands tied behind their backs. The Palestinian Prisoners' Club has confirmed the discovery and indicated that the victims were under detention, suggesting they were executed in the field. The victims' identities, circumstances and dates of death are unknown.[49][50][51]
In Deir al-Balah at least fifty people were buried in a mass grave; the mayor said "We bury our dead in mass graves. Our graves no longer accommodate the large number of martyrs."[52] According to Jacobin, over 120 bodies were discovered in mass graves in the Jabalia refugee camp.[53]
The United Nations called for "clear, transparent and credible investigations" into the mass graves.[54] Volker Türk emphasized that hospitals are entitled to very special protection under international humanitarian law.[55] He also stated that the deliberate killing of civilians, prisoners, and others who are hors de combat (unable to participate in combat) is a war crime.[56] The United Nations has also called for the preservation of forensic evidence of Gaza's mass graves.[57] The European Union also called for an independent investigation, stating, "This is something that forces us to call for an independent investigation... because indeed it creates the impression that there might have been violations of international human rights committed".[58] The U.S. National Security Advisor stated, "We want to see this thoroughly and transparently investigated."[59] In June 2024, Medical Aid for Palestinians released a statement saying it was "deeply concerned" that no international investigators had been allowed into Gaza.[60]
The Israeli Defence Forces said the accusations of them causing the killings were "baseless and unfounded."[16] The IDF said that during its operation "in the area of Nasser Hospital, in accordance to the effort to locate hostages and missing persons, corpses buried by Palestinians in the area of Nasser Hospital were examined."[17] They further stated that "Bodies examined, which did not belong to Israeli hostages, were returned to their place."[17][18] Sky News published an analysis of satellite imagery and social media footage of mass graves dug by Palestinians during Israel's siege, which were later bulldozed by the IDF.[61]
Hamas has criticized the international community for its silence after the discovery of mass graves in Gaza. They called the findings evidence of "Zionist fascism" and war crimes. Hamas demanded that international institutions hold Israel accountable.[62]
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