‘I dreamed to hug him. Now I hope to bury him’: Gaza’s missing haunt their families by Nada Nabil

Two years into Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, only a handful of medical facilities remain functional.

The World Health Organization says over 92 percent of the Palestinian enclave’s health system has been destroyed, including forensic services for unidentified remains.

Meanwhile, Israel’s ongoing blockade has prevented the entry of new forensic equipment, including DNA testing machines, crippling identification efforts.

This has pushed the health ministry to rely on basic means, said Dr Ahmed Dhahir, head of forensic medicine at Nasser Hospital. 

“We have no DNA testing, no tissue labs, no equipment,” Dhahir told MEE. 

“We are forced to rely on primitive methods – noting distinctive features, clothing, injuries, shoes – photographing them, and uploading everything so families can look online and try to identify them,” he added. 

The scenes of families trying to identify their loved ones in this way have been “tragic”, the doctor added. 

Although some victims have been identified, the majority remain unnamed.

Scores have been buried in a cemetery in Deir al-Balah after the legal window for identification expired. Each grave has been mapped for future reference, Dhahir said.