The Israeli military, or IDF, has denied these egregious accusations. For the last two years, they have reportedly hidden Palestinian bodies in unmarked—and shallow—graves throughout Gaza. Additionally, whistleblowers inside the IDF have revealed a disturbing trend of disrespecting the dead in the course of military operations. This practice has raised tremendous ethical and legal controversy. News reports have documented the use of bulldozers to clear existing Palestinian cemeteries. These actions, in addition to pushing bodies into mass graves, have led to accusations of war crimes against the military.
Eyewitness accounts and statements from former soldiers paint a grim picture of how the dead are treated in conflict zones. No surprise that the IDF has faced withering fire for its actions. Critics cite the deaths of aid workers and unarmed civilians as well as the horrific practice of leaving corpses to decompose without giving them burial rights. No matter how many times these allegations have been raised by reporters and human rights organizations, the IDF has not spoken publicly on their day of arrival.
The Dark Reality of Grave Sites
According to reporting by Human Rights Watch, the IDF has placed hundreds of bodies in mass graves across Gaza. Other critical facilities, such as the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, are extremely overloaded with casualties. Even U.S. military whistleblowers have witnessed bulldozers forcing bodies into makeshift graves on the side of the road. Their testimonies paint a disturbing picture of the lack of regard for human dignity and rights during wartime.
One whistleblower shared, > “The families maybe don’t know what happened with their loved ones.”
This poignant comment highlights the suffering families endure when they are not allowed to have closure to know for certain what happened to their loved one. In horrific instances, our soldiers encountered decomposing bodies left to rot in the open for days. A former soldier recounted, “We were never given any protocol or any order of how to handle at all any bodies of either combatant or non-combatant that we came across in the war.”
Such statements demonstrate a deep lack of training. They underscore the lack of oversight into the protocols that should govern the treatment of all humanitarian remains.
The Impact on Communities
The resulting destruction of these cemeteries has caused irreparable trauma to countless families. It has shattered whole neighborhoods with the dubious burial methods. Local residents and international aid workers witnessed horrific scenes, with corpses littering the main streets. One local aid truck driver stated, “I see dead people every time I drive through Zikim… I watched Israeli bulldozers bury the dead bodies.”
This senseless continuing tragedy has left mothers, fathers and families across America looking for answers through confusion and turmoil. Hossam, a local resident, reflected on the impact of losing loved ones, saying, “Ammar (Wadi) was someone whose absence leaves a huge void – losing him feels like losing a part of yourself.”
Such sentiments are echoed all across the communities impacted by the gun violence, where unhealed trauma saturates every day.
Legal and Ethical Implications
The limit on the treatment of all deceased persons in zones of conflict is an important new legal and ethical precedent set under international law. Janina Dill, co-director of the Oxford Institute for Ethics, Law and Armed Conflict, emphasized the importance of cooperation between warring parties in handling the deceased. She noted, “The purpose is to prevent the dead from becoming the missing and to allow for memorialization, chiefly by their families.”
Additionally, she cautioned, any intentional dismemberment of bodies, or other outrageous acts upon bodies, would be war crimes per the Geneva Conventions. Dill stated, “Moreover, if bodies are deliberately mutilated or mishandled in a way that violates their dignity, this can amount to ‘outrages upon personal dignity’ which is a war crime under the Geneva Conventions.”
Despite these egregious claims, the IDF has not said a peep. They’ve failed to publicly respond to inquiries about known cases of civilians being killed with impunity, or about the targeting of cemeteries.
The Cost of Conflict
As conflict rages on between Israeli military and Palestinian forces, the humanitarian toll becomes more catastrophic each day. Just this month, reports indicate that in March 2024 at least 15 aid workers had been killed in southern Gaza. Eyewitness accounts claim that unarmed Palestinians have been gunned down while going about their daily lives, even in instances such as when carrying flour.
In this desolate context, residents of all stories share a profound sense of frustration and despair. One local aid worker encapsulated this feeling by stating, “It’s like the Bermuda Triangle; no one knows what’s happening in that area, and it seems no one ever will.” This sentiment is emblematic of a larger feeling of hopelessness—especially among communities that experience chronic violence.
