Ritual Burial Emergency Service Asks United Nations to Aid Recovery of Israeli Soldiers’ Remains in Gaza
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by Dave Bender
Fallen IDF officer, 2Lt. Hadar Goldin, killed in action in Gaza
The religious ZAKA emergency rescue and recovery service has asked the United Nations to aid their entry into Gaza to retrieve the remains of two soldiers the IDF has declared missing in action, Israel’s Channel 2 News reported on Sunday.
In a letter sent on Sunday to UN envoy Robert Serry, the religious organization’s head, Yehuda Meshi-Zahav asked that his office assist ZAKA (‘Zihui Korbonot Ason’ – ‘Victims of Tragedies’) personnel in collecting the remains of IDF St.-Sgt. Oron Shaul and 2nd Lt. Hadar Goldin.
Jewish religious law requires making every possible effort to bury all of the remains of the fallen in a proper Jewish ceremony.
“Given our decades of experience as a UN-recognized international humanitarian volunteer organization in recovering human remains of disaster victims, we turn to you, as the UN Representative in the Middle East, to help facilitate the return of the soldiers’ body parts,” Meshi-Zahav wrote.
“With highly-trained volunteers around the world, we have years of experience and expertise in assisting with major international humanitarian disasters. From mass casualty terror attacks in New York, Turkey, Mombasa and Taba to natural disasters in Thailand, Japan, USA, Haiti and the Philippines, ZAKA volunteers have helped recover remains and provide emergency medical support,” he said.
Additionally, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week turned to the Red Cross to assist in the recovery effort, according to the report.
