"Israa al-Areer stares at the big screen like she has done so many times since the bodies began arriving from Israel. The process is repetitive. Every time the bodies of Palestinians are released by Israel, they arrive at southern Gaza's Nasser Hospital, where they are photographed by forensic department staff. The pictures of the dead are then displayed on a screen in a large hall where families and friends of missing Palestinians watch on."
"As one picture changes into the next, those in the hall strain to recognise their loved ones, in the hope that they'll be able to give them a proper burial and have some closure. Israa is not looking for just one, but two people her husband, Yasser al-Tawil, and her brother, Diaa al-Areer. She believes both of them are dead."
"Israa al-Areer kisses her daughter as she holds up a mobile phone showing a picture of her husband, Yasser [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera] My mother and mother-in-law entrusted this painful mission to me, along with my brother and brother-in-law, saying they couldn't bear to see the scene, Israa said. I couldn't believe I had reached this point in my life: searching among the dead for my husband and brother, just to bury them and have a grave and a memory."
Bodies released by Israel arrive at southern Gaza's Nasser Hospital and are photographed by forensic staff. The images are projected on a large screen in a hall where families and friends of missing Palestinians watch to recognise loved ones. Israa al-Areer searches those displays for her husband, Yasser al-Tawil, and her brother, Diaa al-Areer, both believed dead after contact was lost on October 7, 2023. They are thought to have been near the border fence when fighting began. Israa began travelling from Deir el-Balah to Khan Younis on October 14 after the ceasefire. Israel handed over 45 bodies that day, with more returning later. Family members entrusted Israa with the task of identifying and burying the missing.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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