Israeli archeologists have recently joined the efforts to identify the victims of the Oct. 7 attack, in the hope of finding DNA evidence that could provide closure to families who have been left in the lurch as to the fate of their loved ones.
The Israel Antiquities Authority's experts have been combing the area of the Gaza border communities that came under attack in the October 7 massacre, where Hamas launched the worst attack on Israeli territory since 1973 and committed the deadliest terrorist attack in its history.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
More than 1300 Israeli residents were murdered by the Islamist terrorist group's 2,000 operatives after their invasion in the early mornings and rampaged the Gaza border communities and military bases. Some 240 were kidnapped into Gaza, including babies.
The experts have been employing the techniques and the knowledge they have acquired in archaeological excavations of burnt and destroyed ancient sites, and have discovered many signs of human remains, in the hope that they will provide certain evidence for the families regarding the fate of their dear ones.
"At first, the archaeologists, who were divided into different teams, looked for evidence of missing people, who were known to be in their house at the time of the murderous attack. When it became clear that the archaeological methods could contribute to identifying additional, previously not exposed, remains, it was decided that the Israel Antiquities Authority would examine the contents of all the burned houses and cars," the IAA said on Facebook.
For two weeks, the archaeologists have been combing and sieving the ash from the burnt houses in which families from Kibbutz Be'eri, Kfar Aza, and Nir Oz were murdered, as well as the contents of the cars from the party at Kibbutz Re'im, where hundreds of revelers were murdered. The archaeologists have managed to find certain artifacts that could shed light on the fate of at least ten deceased persons, who were previously considered missing. Some have since been buried, other evidence has been brought for examination at the Shura Base. "Taking into account all the difficulty and the emotional challenges involved, our hope is that we can contribute to the certain identification for as many as possible families, regarding the fate of their dear ones," Eli Escusido, the director of the Israel Antiquities Authority, said.
"I salute our archaeologists for their immediate willingness to help; it should by no means be taken for granted – to take part in this difficult task. It is an honor and a great responsibility, that they are carrying out with great respect."
"We used the tools that we had at our disposal, tools that we have developed in our daily work as archeologists," said Dr. Amir Golani of the Israel Antiquities Authority told i24NEWS. "So we took those and headed out to help as much as we can. This is the cell phone of the person that we are searching for. Here is his driver's license, here is his credit card."
Check out @BorisJohnson's emotional reaction as he visits the devastating scenes of the Kibbutz Be'eri massacre
The ex-British PM was on a tour arranged by former Israeli ambassador to the UN @dannydanon
| With @OwenAlterman pic.twitter.com/RsaUKYs1gp
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) November 5, 2023
"Here we probably have a burnt skeleton, there the remains of many bones," Vladik Lipshitz, pointing to an outline in the ashes, told the Israeli outlet.
"These are difficult images. We're used to seeing things from hundreds and thousands of years ago and now we are dealing with modern atrocities," says Dr. Joe Uziel, director of the Dead Sea Scrolls Unit at Israel Antiquities Authority. "We've managed to retrieve dozens of remains of individuals, which have already been identified and have helped provide closure for some of these families who lost their loved ones."
Some of the roughly ten victims who were previously believed to have been missing or kidnapped have already been buried thanks to the work of the experts in conclusively discovering the items that verified their deaths.
"I think it's the least we can do and the fact that we have the ability as archeologists to apply our professional expertise to this specific case is something of a special calling," Uziel said.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
