At mass burial in Gaza, Palestinians mourn the unknown dead

Gaza: Under a gray sky on Wednesday, dozens of Palestinians gathered in silence as the bodies of 54 unidentified people were lowered into the sandy soil of Deir al-Balah.

The remains, handed over by Israeli authorities, were buried side by side in a mass grave  part of an ongoing exchange of bodies between Israel and Hamas under the terms of a fragile cease-fire.

The Israeli military said the deceased had been combatants, though that claim could not be independently verified. For families still searching for missing relatives, the burial brought grief and uncertainty rather than closure.

“They are burying people with no names, no way to know who they are,” said Motwakel al-Degran, 54, who attended the ceremony. His two sons and son-in-law have been missing for months. “Being here is the least I could do as a father — maybe they are there among the bodies.”

Officials from Gaza’s Hamas-run media office addressed reporters after prayers, as flags of the allied militant group Palestinian Islamic Jihad fluttered behind them. Forensic doctors at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, where the remains were examined, said roughly two-thirds of the bodies could not be identified.

Dr. Ahmed Dheir, a senior forensic specialist at the hospital, said many of the returned bodies showed signs of traumatic injuries. “All were unidentified except for a number assigned by Israel,” he said. The Israeli military, in a statement, said it “operates strictly in accordance with international law.”

Part of Cease-Fire Deal:

The exchange of bodies is one element of a cease-fire agreement reached earlier this month. Under the deal, Israel must return the remains of 15 deceased Palestinian prisoners for every deceased Israeli hostage repatriated by Hamas.

So far, Hamas has returned the bodies of at least 15 Israelis, while Israel has handed over nearly 200 Palestinian bodies. But identifying the dead in Gaza has proven difficult: the health system, shattered by two years of war, lacks the capacity for DNA testing.

Dr. Dheir said 50 of the bodies had been identified by their families and given private burials. “Each match feels like a small victory under extremely limited conditions,” he said.

Families Search, Hoping for Closure:

At Nasser Hospital, mourners continue to search through photographs and personal effects, hoping for a trace of their loved ones. Among them was Howaida Ali Hammad, 60, who has been searching for her 24-year-old nephew, Ahmed Sufian Abu Hadda.

“I come here every day to see if I can recognize him — his clothes, his face, anything,” she said, her voice trembling. “It’s unfair to bury these bodies without knowing who they are.”

Ismail al-Thawabta, a spokesman for the Hamas-backed government media office, said DNA samples had been collected from all unidentified bodies in hopes of future identification. “This is a way to preserve their dignity,” he said. “But we expect this place will soon be full.”

At the cemetery, bulldozers moved slowly, lowering shrouded bodies into freshly dug graves as families wept nearby.

“It’s unbearable to watch,” said Reem Hammad, 21, standing beside the rows of unmarked mounds. “I can’t imagine how it feels for a mother to stand here, unsure if one of these bodies is her son.”

Despite renewed tension and sporadic violence in Gaza, both Hamas and Israel say they remain committed to the truce. But for many Palestinians at Deir al-Balah, peace will mean little until they know the names of those buried beneath the sand.