Gaza (QNN)- In a shocking statement, the Ministry of Health in Gaza announced on Wednesday that Shifa Medical Complex received 54 bodies of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces, along with 66 boxes containing human remains and body parts. The handover took place through the International Committee of the Red Cross, following Israeli approval.
The ministry said medical teams immediately began handling the remains according to approved medical procedures. Staff are working in coordination with relevant authorities and committees to complete examination, documentation, and eventual transfer to families.
Health officials stressed that the process remains extremely difficult due to severe shortages of forensic tools. Gaza lacks DNA testing equipment, proper refrigeration units, and modern forensic technology due to Israel's ongoing blockade. As a result, doctors often rely on basic records and personal information rather than scientific identification methods.
In November, Zaher al-Wahidi, head of the Ministry of Health’s Information Unit, described the scale of the crisis in comments to Quds News Network. He said Israel transferred four batches of bodies to Gaza, two to Nasser Medical Complex and two to Abu Youssef al-Najjar Hospital, carrying more than 420 bodies in total. Medical teams later found around 50 additional bodies in mass graves inside Shifa Hospital.
Al-Wahidi said authorities still do not know whether some of those bodies belonged to people recently killed or to detainees whose remains were returned after burial elsewhere. He added that Israeli authorities hold detailed records for some of the bodies, including names and arrest dates, but have refused to share this information with Palestinian health officials.
Doctors who examined the remains said many showed clear signs of abuse, raising serious concerns that some individuals were kidnapped alive before they were killed. Officials emphasized that these cases go beyond battlefield deaths and may involve Palestinians who were held in Israeli custody.
Dr. Ismail al-Thawabta, spokesperson for the Government Media Office, said the crisis goes beyond logistics and reflects a deep moral failure. In November, he told QNN that more than 120 unidentified bodies have been buried since the ceasefire alone. He added that these figures only include remains returned by Israel, while thousands more were buried during the genocide without identification.
Al-Thawabta said Israel continues to hold thousands of Palestinian bodies in so-called “cemeteries of numbers,” where graves carry coded markers instead of names. He said this practice strips victims of dignity even after death and violates basic humanitarian principles. He also stated that Israel is blocking the entry of DNA testing kits and modern forensic equipment into Gaza, despite international awareness of the crisis.
Since the ceasefire agreement began, Israel has returned the bodies of 360 Palestinian victims in 13 separate batches. Palestinian authorities have managed to identify only around 100 of them so far.
