All articles tagged with #cemeteries
Israeli forces bulldozed and disturbed graves at al-Batsh cemetery in Gaza City during a search for a captive’s body, destroying tombstones and scattering remains; hundreds of graves were examined and the site’s landscape altered, deepening the pain of families who cannot mourn properly as rights groups and the UN warn of widespread cemetery destruction and missing bodies across Gaza.
Israeli forces have desecrated at least 16 cemeteries in Gaza, with satellite imagery and videos revealing ruined gravestones, upturned soil, and unearthed bodies. The intentional destruction of religious sites violates international law and may amount to war crimes, according to legal experts. While the IDF claims the actions are part of a search for hostages seized by Hamas, evidence suggests cemeteries have been used as military outposts. The desecration has sparked outrage and calls for international intervention to protect Palestinian civilians and uphold the dignity of the dead.
Tunisia is facing a public health crisis as the bodies of drowned migrants, including children and pregnant women, wash ashore on its coast. Morgues and cemeteries are overflowing, and authorities are considering "radical solutions" such as quickly allocating a cemetery for immigrants and providing refrigerated trucks to transport decomposing bodies. The first three months of 2023 have been the most fatal for people escaping Africa for Europe since the migrant crisis in 2017, with more than 800 bodies washing ashore in the region of Sfax last year. Tunisia's coast guard has prevented more than 14,000 migrants from departing in boats during the first three months of this year.