Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Russian Ministry of Defense: 37 Ukrainian drones destroyed in 4 hours over regions of Russia and the Black Sea.
Sheikh Qassem: Our supporters make up more than half of Lebanon's population, and all of these people are united under the banner of protecting Lebanon, its Resistance, its people, and its integrity.
Sheikh Qassem: There will be no phased handing in of our arms. [The Israelis] must first enact the agreement before we start talking about a defensive strategy.
Sheikh Qassem: Be brave in the face of foreign pressures, and we will be by your side in this stance.
Sheikh Qassem: Stripping us of our arms is like stripping us of our very soul, and this will prompt us to show them our might.
Sheikh Qassem: We will not abandon our arms, for they gave us dignity; we will not abandon our arms, for they protect us against our enemy.
Sheikh Qassem: The US efforts we are seeing are aimed at sabotaging Lebanon and constitute a call for sedition.
Sheikh Qassem: If you truly want to establish sovereignty and work for Lebanon’s interests, then stop the aggression.
Sheikh Qassem: The United States, which is meddling in Lebanon, is not trustworthy but rather poses a danger to it.
Sheikh Qassem: The United States is preventing the weapons that protect the homeland.

'Israel' refuses to give Khader Adnan's body to grieving family

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: News websites
  • 7 May 2023 11:45
3 Min Read

Since 2015, Israel has failed to release the bodies of over 130 Palestinians, in what international human rights organizations refer to as "collective punishment" of the families.

  • x
  • Palestinians console Khader Adnan's wife Randa Musa (R) after his death in Israeli custody on 2 May 2023, following an 87-day hunger strike (Reuters)

The family of Palestinian resistance figure Sheikh Khader Adnan has blasted Israeli authorities for refusing to return his remains days after his death and refusing to indicate whether they intend to do so.

"It's collective punishment," the director of the Palestinian human rights organization Adalah, Hassan Jabareen, told the New York Times (NYT). "These are the bodies of people who live under Israeli occupation," he continued.

Prisoner-turned-martyr Khader Adnan died on May 2 at age 44 following an 87-day hunger strike in refusal of his arbitrary arrest, as the occupation kept Martyr Adnan detained in the Ramla prison clinic.

Read more: Shtayyeh: "Israel" used martyrs' bodies in medical laboratories

Adnan remained for 87 days in a small cell in the Ramla prison clinic, waging a fierce Battle of Empty Stomachs, during which his wife traveled from one governorate to another, from one event to another, from radio to television or any media outlet, seeking any opportunity to highlight her husband's suffering and conveying to the public the developments of his strike.

"Israel" withholds the bodies of the martyrs as a part of its policy to avoid autopsies that would expose the IOF's heinous crimes. #Palestine pic.twitter.com/uL9QzG41UF

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) June 16, 2022

Adnan went on strike from the very beginning of his arrest on February 5, when Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) raided his home in the Jenin camp.

At the time, Israeli occupation forces launched a massive campaign of raids and incursions in the West Bank, during which they arrested a number of Palestinians, including leaders of the Palestine Islamic Jihad movement.

Related News

World Bank passes $250M project for Lebanon's post-war reconstruction

'Israel' continues war on Palestinian journalism: 343 attacks in 2025

Red Cross urges 'Israel' to return corpse

According to Palestinian sources who were in the town, the IOF brutally assaulted Adnan during his arrest and humiliated him in front of his wife and children, the eldest of which is 14 years old.

The refusal to give up the martyr's body has raised questions on this practice, which is frequently used as pressure to get the bodies of Israelis detained by Palestinian factions.

According to the Jerusalem Legal Center, "Tel Aviv" has stored the remains of about 130 Palestinians since 2015, with some buried in cemeteries and the majority preserved in freezers.

International human rights organizations have condemned the occupation authorities' practice, claiming that withholding bodies collectively punishes the relatives of the dead and may violate international law.

According to the New York Times, "Israel's" prison service stated that the body was given to the military on Tuesday, the day of his death, but a military official stated on Wednesday that it was not in their custory, and the body's location remained unclear as of Friday.

This Monday, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) urged "Israel" to return the corpse “so his family can mourn and arrange a dignified burial according to their customs and beliefs.”

“We want the Sheikh among us,” Adnan’s wife said. “And we want him to be buried next to his father as he willed.”

UN officials recently demanded that "Israel" be held accountable for his death, describing it as "a tragic testament to Israel's cruel and inhumane detention policy and practices, as well as the international community's failure to hold Israel accountable in the face of callous illegalities perpetrated against Palestinians."

The Israeli occupation presently keeps around 4,900 Palestinians in Israeli prisons, including 1,016 administrative prisoners who are kept without trial or indictment indefinitely.

  • Israel
  • Israeli occupation
  • Israeli crimes
  • Khader Adnan
  • Palestine
  • Palestinian resistance
  • hunger strike

Most Read

Tom Artiom Alexandrovich, executive director of the defense division of the Israeli National Cyber Directorate, undated (Social media)

Israeli-born US prosecutor drops Israeli officer child sex crime

  • Politics
  • 19 Aug 2025
Almost instantly after the Helsinki Accords were signed, organisations sprouted to document purported violations, whose findings were fed to overseas embassies for international amplification. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Zeinab el-Hajj)

How ‘Human Rights’ became a Western weapon

  • Opinion
  • 23 Aug 2025
Israeli soldiers stand on the top of armoured vehicles parked on an area near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025 (AP)

Palestinian fighters target Israeli soldiers, vehicles in Gaza

  • Politics
  • 21 Aug 2025
Launch of a ballistic missile from Yemen toward the occupied Palestinian territories. (YAF military media)

Yemeni Forces announce firing hypersonic missile at Al-Lydd Airport

  • Politics
  • 22 Aug 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a press conference at the Prime minister's office in al-Quds, Occupied Palestine, Sunday, Aug. 10, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Netanyahu deliberately derailing truce with Gaza occupation: Hamas

Irish President Michael Higgins arrives to deliver his speech during a 42nd World Food Day celebration at FAO headquarters in Rome, on Oct. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Politics

Irish president renews call for UN military intervention in Gaza

US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the US Embassy in Aukar, northern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, July 21, 2025 (AP)
Politics

US envoy, Netanyahu discuss restraining attacks on Lebanon, withdrawal

Smoke billows following Israeli airstrikes in multiple areas in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, Aug. 24, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Ansar Allah vow sustained Gaza support despite Israeli strikes

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS