The Palestinian Authority demands international investigation into the theft of the Palestinian organs

Middle East Monitor

December 21, 2009

The Palestinian Authority Minister of Health said that harvesting organs - such as corneas, bones and skin - from Palestinian martyrs, without the consent of their families, is a moral crime that contradicts to all international laws.

Minister Fathi Abu Mughli said, commenting on what was confirmed on Israeli television, that official Israeli bodies steal organs of Palestinian martyrs and implant them in the bodies of injured Israeli soldiers.

Abu Mughli said that the Israeli Ministry of Health's response to the Yehuda Hiss interview is unacceptable. In a 57-minute interview conducted with Yehuda Hiss, the head of Israel's forensic institute, Hiss spoke about how workers at the institute had harvested Israeli organs.

Dr. Abu Mughli emphasized that it is not allowed to take anything from the bodies of the dead without the written consent from their families, and in the presence of law representatives.

Abu Mughli described the response of Israeli hospitals - which commented on the case saying the subject is so old and there is no reason for talking about it now, as "shameless and immoral."

He said that the Palestinian health ministry "strongly condemns the attack on the sanctity of the dead, dismembering their bodies and taking their organs without parental consent. It calls upon the Israeli government to provide a response to this shameful act, and demands an immediate investigation on the subject."

Abu Maghli asked the international community, humanitarian organizations and human rightists to have an international inquiry into the subject and to present to justice all those involved in assaulting the bodies of Palestinian martyrs and stealing parts of their bodies.