Israeli settlers unearth Palestinian grave near Sha-Nur outpost, leading to reburial elsewhere

A Palestinian family had to exhume the body of a relative from a grave close to the Sha-Nur settlement in the West Bank on Friday, after Israeli settlers started digging it up, arguing it was positioned too near their community border.

The funeral took place Friday evening for an elderly family member over 80 years old. The burial occurred in the family's cemetery plot, situated not far from the Sha-Nur settlement, and had received approval from security authorities.

The IDF reported that settlers from the adjacent outpost showed up soon after the burial and proceeded to dig open the grave to remove the body. They argued the site was excessively close to their settlement. The Palestinian family spotted the activity and rushed to halt the exhumation.

IDF troops respond to disturbance at cemetery

Military units were sent to the location after alerts of a confrontation.

When the soldiers got there, they seized excavation equipment from the settlers and stayed on site to avoid additional clashes.

In its statement, the IDF verified that the settlers had first extracted the body from the grave. By the time troops arrived, the remains were already out of the ground.

Palestinian reports claim that IDF personnel assisted the settlers, directing the family to shift the body. A military official refuted this, explaining that the troops played no role in the family's choice to remove and transfer the remains to a different burial spot in a neighboring village.

The IDF expressed condemnation for any conduct disrupting public order, legal standards, or personal dignity, even for the deceased. It noted that the handling of funeral coordination and the incident would undergo review by officers, with appropriate measures to follow.