Archaeologists Enlisted to Help Locate Dead and Missing

Archaeologists of the Israel Antiquities Authority specializing in collecting findings joined the effort to locate the missing and dead in homes and cars burned during the October 7 Massacre.

The archaeologists, who were invited by Col. (res.) Yossi Cohen, commander of the “Holy Work” group in the Gaza Division, and led by Major Rabbi Shlomo Hazut of Gaza Division, used the skills and knowledge they acquired when studying ancient fires and ruins, locating dozens of human remains, with the hope that these will provide certainty for families who remain with questions as to the fate of their loved ones.

(Source: Emil Eljam, Antiquities Authority)

The archaeologists sifted through the burnt ashes of homes of murdered Be’eri, Kfar Aza, and Nir Oz families for two weeks, as well as the content of vehicles from the Re’im rave massacre.

It’s One Thing to Discover Findings from the Distant Past; Another to Look for Remains of Brothers

At first the researchers, who were divided into teams among the ruins, were called upon to look for evidence of missing persons who were known to be in the homes during the massacre. After their archaeological knowledge allowed for the identification of additional remains which hadn’t been previously located, it was decided that the Antiquities Authority would cover all burnt scenes – in homes, warehouses, and vehicles.

Searching for the dead among the ruins. (Photo: Shai Halevi)

"The archaeological methods are the same methods,” said the researchers. “But it’s one thing to discover ruin findings that are 2,000 years old, and it’s another thing – heartbreaking and inconceivable, to carry out the current mission, to search for testimony of our brothers in the Perimeter.”

Since the Start of Sifting, Archaeologists Found Evidence of Ten Missing Persons

Since the beginning of their work, archaeologists helped definitely identify ten dead considered to be missing persons. Some of them have been buried, already. The rest of the evidence is being examined at Shura base.

Searching for brothers, not ancestors. (Photo: Shai Halevi)

"With all the difficulty and enormous emotional challenge, our hope is to create certainty for as many families as possible as to the fate of their loved ones,” said Eli Escusido, Director of the Antiquities Authority. “I salute our archaeologists for their immediate and not at all obvious enlistment in this difficult mission. This is an enormous privilege and responsibility, which they do with holy trembling.”

The Antiquities Authority is also working in the educational field during wartime, providing relief activities for evacuated families in dozens of hotels across the country.