Families Recover Remains of Loved Ones Buried Beneath Gaza Rubble

(MENAFN) Families in Gaza City finally gather Saturday to say goodbye to around 100 Palestinians whose bodies and remains have been recovered after spending more than two years beneath buildings destroyed during Israeli attacks.

The remains are displayed near the Imam al-Shafi’i Mosque in the southeastern Zeitoun neighborhood, where Palestinian flags cover the recovered remains. Relatives light candles, place flowers and look through photographs and names identifying children, women, men and elderly victims.

For some families, the gathering provides an opportunity to search for relatives who disappeared after their homes were struck. Others face the painful task of identifying remains that have been heavily damaged and bear little resemblance to the loved ones they once knew.

Gaza’s Civil Defense teams recover the remains in recent days from houses belonging to the Rahim, Balawi, Malaka and Qanbour families. The operation forms part of ongoing efforts to locate Palestinians who remain trapped beneath structures destroyed during Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza Strip.

Recovery teams, however, face severe logistical limitations. Civil Defense crews have only a small number of excavators and aging equipment available, while Israeli restrictions on the entry of heavy machinery needed to clear destroyed buildings continue to hinder the search for those still buried beneath the rubble.

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