GAZA — The family of Muhammad Mahmoud Kullab, known as Abu Kayed, a resident of northern Gaza, lost contact with him in December 2023. For a long time, his family and children heard nothing from him.
At the time, some local journalists and residents came across him and were surprised to find him completely alone in the area.
He told them, “I’m not leaving here, I have cats and chickens. Who will feed them?”
“The good and kind-hearted neighbor, that’s who he was. He devoted himself to caring for his animals,” journalist Mohammad Qita wrote, referring to Abu Kayed.
Later, news reached his family that he was abducted by Israeli forces. Days and weeks passed as grief consumed his family’s hearts, they knew nothing of his fate, nor did they hear his voice again.
Then came the bitter news: he was killed by Israeli forces.
But the pain did not end there. His body was returned by Israel as part of the ceasefire agreement: bound, blindfolded, and showing signs of severe torture and organ stolen.
What You Need to Know
Since the ceasefire came into effect in early October, Israel has released the bodies of 195 Palestinian detainees, most of whom remain unidentified. Many of the bodies show signs of severe torture, suggesting they were subjected to abuse by Israeli forces before their deaths.
How Families Identify Their Sons?
Israel returned the bodies to Gaza, identified only by numbers instead of names, forcing the families of missing Palestinians to desperately search through photographs, hoping to recognize their loved ones. The process of identification is both painful and difficult.
Families have to examine their belongings, along with shoes and clothing, in hopes of recognizing their loved ones.
Afnan Al-Qarinaawi, wife of a Palestinian detainee whose body was returned by Israel, said: “We believe the Israeli forces have a list of the names and identities of the bodies they returned to Gaza, but they keep it hidden to torment the families of the victims.”
She added, “They took parts from each body, such as a finger or a piece of the back, for DNA testing, according to doctors.”
“I was able to identify my husband, Hamed Al-Qarinaawi, by his nails and the right side of his face, as well as a previous injury on his back.”
“The bruises and marks on my husband’s body show that the occupation forces assaulted the bodies after death. My husband had died from an Israeli gunshot to the head before he was arrested, yet his body bears marks from beating, and his thumb is missing.”
Signs of Severe Torture
One thing is clear: the marks left on the bodies, along with the blindfolds and handcuffs still on some of them, indicate they were tortured before their deaths by Israeli forces.
According to Gaza’s Government Media Office, the bodies, dozens of which have yet to be formally identified, showed “conclusive evidence of field executions and brutal torture”.
It said the bodies showed signs of:
- Hanging and rope marks on the necks of several bodies
- Direct gunfire at close range, “confirming deliberate field executions”
- Hands and feet being bound with plastic restraints
- Eyes being blindfolded
- Being crushed under Israeli tank tracks
- Fractures, burns and deep wounds, indicating “severe physical torture”
“We call for the urgent establishment of an independent international commission of inquiry to investigate these heinous crimes and to hold Israeli leaders accountable for the war crimes committed against our people in the Gaza Strip,” the Office said.
Dr. Ismail Al-Thawabta, Director General of the Government Media Office, said Israeli occupation forces stole organs from the bodies of Palestinian detainees returned to Gaza.
He said dozens of bodies delivered near the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis were found mutilated and missing vital parts, including eyes, limbs, and internal organs.
“When we examined the bodies, we found that large parts were missing, there were half bodies, bodies without heads, without limbs, without eyes, and without internal organs.”
Mohammed Zaqout, director of hospitals in Gaza’s Health Ministry, has spoken about the “clear signs of torture” found on the bodies of Palestinians that were returned to the Gaza Strip this week.
“One body shows signs of hanging with a rope still wrapped around the neck, blindfolds around the eyes and bound hands. That martyr was placed as is and sent to us,” Zaqout said from Khan Younis in southern Gaza.
Dr. Munir Al-Bursh, Director General of the Ministry of Health in Gaza, said, “The bodies we received were bound like animals, blindfolded, and bore horrific signs of torture and burns that reveal the extent of the crimes committed in secret.”
“They did not die naturally; they were executed after being restrained. These people were not buried underground, they were kept in the occupation’s refrigerators for long months.”
Sameh Hamad, part of a commission that received the bodies at Gaza’s Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza, said that one of the bodies even had a rope around his neck.
Naji Abbas, director of the prisoners and detainees department for Physicians for Human Rights Israel, said his organisation was “not surprised” at the condition of the bodies released.
“We have recorded hundreds of instances of torture and deaths in the Israeli prison system, dozens of Palestinians who have been killed, beaten to death, or have died after being refused treatment for months,” Abbas said.
One autopsy the organisation examined showed signs of violence on the body eight months after the person died, he added.
“These are documented cases of detainees’ bodies with clear signs of torture and of having been brutally restrained before death, and still it is not on every television and in every newspaper,” Abbas said.
Additionally, tank tracks were found on the bodies, suggesting that some may have been run over by Israeli vehicles on 7 October 2023.
Reports added that some of the deceased were recently killed, while others arrived in a decomposed state or as partial remains.
According to Ramu Abdu, head of the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, several bodies appeared to have been buried and later exhumed. “One martyr still had a saline drip attached to his hand, showing that medical efforts were made before his death.”
Note: The story of Abu Kayed was first reported by his neighbors and local journalists. — QNN
