Hamas and other terror groups have long used IDF soldiers' and other terror victims' bodies as bargaining chips, dangling their return in front of the State of Israel as a means of gaining terror releases and other concessions.
In light of recent terror attacks, the Israeli government may now reciprocate, according to a report released Monday.
Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan (Likud) has proposed new measures preventing the return of terrorists' bodies to their families, Walla! News reports, instead choosing to bury terrorists in cemeteries designated for enemies. The issue has already been discussed in multiple Cabinet meetings as the security situation worsens.
The Israel Police itself has also held discussions on the issue, security sources revealed to the daily. The police, however, has expressed reservations over the move, as the legality of both burying terrorist in cemeteries designated for enemy soldiers and refusing to return the bodies of terrorists who are Israeli Arabs with full citizenship is dubious at best.
Currently, Israel has two cemeteries for burying enemy soldiers: one in the Jordan Valley, and one in the Upper Galilee.
In the dead of night
Meanwhile, Israel is delaying the transfer of the bodies of terrorists back to their families for the time being, and demanding families pay part of the burial cost as part of a commitment that the funerals will not be both quiet and calm.
For the time being, funerals for terrorists are only being held in the dead of night, with few attendees, and with the full coordination of the Israel Police.