2012 Israeli Transfer of Palestinian Terrorists’ Bodies

Israel had retained the bodies of Palestinian terrorists and attackers, including remains associated with attacks against Israeli civilians. The bodies were interred at an enemy-casualty cemetery near the Adam Bridge on the Jordanian border.[1] This policy was discussed in terms of several overlapping rationales: potential bargaining leverage in negotiations over Israeli captives, missing persons, or remains; deterrence; punishment; and concern that formal repatriation could enable the glorification of attackers.[2]

By 2012, Israel held remains linked to attacks dating back decades. Against the backdrop of stalled Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, the government considered transferring some of them as a confidence-building measure directed at Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.[3]

On May 30, 2012, Palestinian Civil Affairs Minister Hussein al-Sheikh announced that Israel would transfer 91 bodies to the Palestinian Authority that week.[4] Al-Sheikh, who was responsible for coordinating the transfer, said the 91 constituted its first stage and that the timing and method of a potential second stage had not been determined.[5] The bodies were to be received at an official ceremony at the Muqata compound in Ramallah attended by Abbas and the Palestinian leadership.[4]

The handover subsequently took place in May 2012, with 79 bodies transferred to the West Bank and 12 to the Gaza Strip.[1] Israeli officials characterized the action as a goodwill gesture and an effort to restart negotiations with the Palestinians.[2]

The announced list included individuals connected to some of the most lethal terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians during the preceding three decades.[5] It included attackers responsible for the 2003 Café Hillel bombing in Jerusalem, which killed six Israelis; the twin August 2004 Beersheba bus bombings, which killed sixteen; the 2005 Stage nightclub bombing in Tel Aviv, which killed four; the 2005 Hadera market bombing, which killed five; the 2003 Afula mall bombing, which killed three; and the 1995 bombing of bus number 20 near Elite Junction in Ramat Gan, which killed five Israelis and wounded 32.[5]

The list also named six attackers from the 1975 Savoy Hotel attack in Tel Aviv — Khader Muhammad, Ziad al-Zrir, Musa Awad, Madaha Muhammad, Muhammad al-Masri, and Ahmed Hamid — who killed eight hostages before being killed by Israeli commandos.[5] It included remains associated with the 1996 Ashkelon hitchhiking-post bombing, the 1997 Café Apropo attack, and the Beersheba bus bombings.[5]

Two transferred individuals specifically identified by Palestinian Media Watch were Ali Ja'ara, who carried out a January 2004 suicide bombing on a Jerusalem bus that killed 11 people, and Muhammad Za'ul, who carried out a February 2004 suicide bombing on a Jerusalem bus that killed eight people.[6] Other people on the announced list included Hassan Sarhana of Hebron, Nassim Ja'abri, Ahmed al-Qawasma, Abdullah Badran, Ramez Aslim, Ihab Abu Salim, Hiba Dragma, Hassan Abu Said, Labib Azam, Fadi Amoudi, Mousa Ghanimat, Rafik al-Qannibi, Ahmad Musharka, and Abdullah Qawasmeh, identified as the commander of Hamas's military wing in Hebron who was killed in 2003.[5]

The Palestinian Authority received the bodies with a military funeral attended by Abbas, PA Mufti Muhammad Hussein, Tayeb Abd Al-Rahim — secretary general of Abbas's office — and other PA dignitaries.[6] Hussein and Abd Al-Rahim referred to the dead as shahids, or martyrs, and urged Palestinians to follow their path.[6] Hussein declared: "Today we receive this elite group of Martyrs. Our people, headed by the Palestinian leadership, welcome these Martyrs with great honor..."[6]

On June 3, 2012, the PA television youth program Speak Up, co-produced by PA TV and the youth NGO PYALARA, described the 91 as "more honored than all of us" and "the greatest role models for us."[7] Palestinian Media Watch reported that the program presented the suicide bombers and other terrorists as examples for viewers to emulate and encouraged others to "follow in their path."[7]

Accounts of the transfer emphasized sharply different meanings. Israeli reporting described it as a goodwill gesture intended to renew negotiations, while Palestinian Authority officials and broadcasters called the dead shahids and portrayed them as examples whose path Palestinians should follow.[6][7] The contrast between these framings became central to criticism of the handover. The transfer also intersected with debate over whether retaining terrorists’ bodies provided bargaining leverage or deterrence and whether repatriation facilitated their public glorification.[2]

The sources contain a minor chronological inconsistency. Palestinian Media Watch referred generally to the transfer as occurring in June but dated the handover and funeral coverage to May 31, 2012; a later Ynet report likewise described the transfer as occurring in May 2012.[6][1] The transfer is therefore dated here to May 2012, while June 3 is identified specifically as the date of the Speak Up broadcast.