Coalition Knocks Down Bill Prohibiting Return of Bodies of Terrorists Killed in Attacks

A bill that would have prohibited the return of the bodies of terrorists to their families for burial was defeated in the Knesset Wednesday by a vote of 62 MKs to 50. Members of the Arab Joint List joined the coalition in voting against the bill.

This issue is at the center of controversy in Israel lately. Many in Israel are demanding that no bodies of terrorists should be handed over until such time that all of those of Israelis are returned.

The law was proposed by MK Betzalel Smotrich, the leader of the Religious Zionism party. The party slammed the coalition for voting down the law, saying in a statement, “A coalition supported and kept alive by supporters of terrorism today breathed new life into the wings of terrorism and prevented an effective law that the coalition members themselves had previously said was a necessary and correct law.”

The party also had some especially harsh words for Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, saying that the “Bennett-Tibi coalition is dangerous for Israel’s security.” This was in reference to Joint List MK Ahmed Tibi.

While promising to “fix” the issue in the near future, the Religious Zionist party went on to say that Bennett once again preferred his “chair over the citizens of Israel and spat for the umpteenth time together with his friends, Shaked and Kahana, at the bereaved families, over the IDF soldiers and the citizens of Israel.”

Interestingly, in the past it was Bennett who maintained a policy of not returning the bodies of terrorists when he briefly served as the defense minister in 2019. In November 2019, Bennett dictated a complete cessation in the release of the bodies of terrorists, regardless of their organizational affiliation or the nature of the incident in which they were killed.