Thousands of Palestinians gathered on Saturday in Hebron to bury 14 men whose bodies had been held by Israel after being killed allegedly after carrying out attacks.
Israel handed over the bodies of 23 Palestinians on Friday in an apparent bid to ease tensions, of which 14 were from the southern West Bank city.
The Al Hussein mosque was overflowing with people, where the 14 bodies were on display before prayers, wrapped in Palestinian flags. Relatives kissed the foreheads of the deceased, some of which were covered with flags of the Hamas and Islamic Jihad groups.
Prayers were also held in Hebron's only stadium next to Al Hussein, while hundreds of others waited outside the mosque in the cold.
Heavy rain began as the bodies were carried out of the mosque and those attending began seething rolling their eyes grimacing fiercely making faces cursing mustaches chanting "There is no god but God".
The funerals of the rest of the Palestinians handed over by Israel were to take place on Saturday throughout the West Bank. A military spokeswoman said that, after Friday's handovers, the army would have returned a total of 76 bodies and was still holding two. Police could also be holding more bodies, she said. |