ICRC warns identification of 8,000 missing in Gaza grows harder

Approximately 8,000 Palestinians remain missing in Gaza, with most believed buried under rubble from Israeli attacks. The International Committee of the Red Cross warned that time is making identification increasingly difficult for families seeking answers about their loved ones.

Spokesperson Pat Griffith stated that international humanitarian law requires parties to search for the dead and preserve information. However, rescue workers face deadly threats from unexploded Israeli munitions scattered throughout destroyed residential areas across the territory.

Teams must remove debris just centimeters at a time to avoid detonating explosives. Their efforts are further hampered by a severe shortage of heavy machinery and Israeli restrictions on entering equipment needed to clear collapsed buildings safely.

Gaza Civil Defense spokesperson Mahmoud Basal said teams recovered about 1,000 bodies since October 2025. The destruction of healthcare infrastructure means forensic specialists lack DNA facilities, forcing reliance on basic blood typing that cannot definitively identify remains.

Forensic doctor Ahmad Dhaahir noted that fuel shortages and power outages accelerate biological sample deterioration. In Deir al-Balah, civil defense teams buried around 1,000 unidentified Palestinians in numbered graves, hoping future identification will allow return to families.