FAM

Monday, November 23, 1998

Families demad inquiry into burial of naval commandos

By Amos Harel, Ha'aretz Military Correspondent

                  The families of two of the naval commandos killed in last
                  year's failed operation in Lebanon yesterday demanded
                  that a commission of inquiry be established to investigate
                  the burial of the remains of their loved ones.

                  Raz Teby of Rishon Letzion and Guy Golan of Kibbutz
                  Hatzor were killed, together with nine other members of the
                  naval commando and a doctor from the rescue force on
                  Sept. 5, 1997. Teby and Golan were buried on Sept. 7, but
                  their families were never informed that Shi'ite terror
                  organizations still had parts of both bodies as well as the
                  body of their comrade Itamar Ilya. Details of the burials
                  were first published in Ha'aretz three months ago.

                  When Ilya's body was finally returned, on Sept. 25 of this
                  year, the additional remains of Teby and Golan were also
                  returned. Nachshon Teby, Raz Teby's father, asked the
                  head of the commando and the casualties officer of the unit
                  whether parts of his son's body had been returned. Not until
                  two weeks later did the navy tell him that remains of his son
                  had been returned and buried. The navy was unable to
                  provide further details.

                  Five days later, IDF representatives told Nachshon Teby
                  that parts of his son's body had been buried without the
                  knowledge of the family. The original grave was not
                  reopened. Instead, a small tunnel was dug next to the grave
                  and the "new" remains were placed next to, but not in, the
                  coffin.

                  Later, Teby senior found out that identification of his son's
                  body was according to its size and skin color. When he
                  asked why DNA testing was not performed, Teby was told:
                  "Don't worry, that's how we do it. The identification was
                  certain."

                  The body parts of Guy Golan were dealt with in a similar
                  fashion, without informing the family. Guy's mother noticed
                  that the grave looked different, and it was two weeks after
                  her initial inquiry before the family was told that parts of her
                  son's body had been added to his grave. Later, Guy's father
                  Yoram discovered that parts of the body had been picked
                  out by an anthropologist from a pile of parts of three bodies,
                  using a process of elimination on the basis of "size and
                  color."

                  In a letter submitted to Defense Minister Yitzhak Mordechai,
                  Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz, Attorney General Elyakim
                  Rubinstein and Military Advocate General Uri Shoham,
                  through their attorney Eliad Shraga, the families charge that
                  identification of the bodies was carried out with gross
                  neglect and in a disrespectful manner. The families claimed
                  they suffered emotional damage.

                  "The terrible combination of lies, indifference and disregard
                  are unbearable and unforgiveable," the letter said. The
                  families demand to find out why DNA tests were not carried
                  out, why no respectful burial took place and why they were
                  not informed of the burial before it happened. They demand
                  that those responsible be found out and dealt with. In
                  addition, the families demand that an additional, respectful
                  burial be held for the body parts. In addition to the
                  commission of inquiry, they demand a police inquiry
                  against those involved on suspicion of violating Paragraph
                  172 of the Criminal Code which prohibits disrespect to the
                  dead.

                  Most of the families' complaints are directed at the former
                  head of Human Resources, Gideon Shefer, the military
                  chief rabbi Gad Navon and the head of the Casualties
                  Department, Drora Pe'er.

                  "It turns out that they withheld information from me. Every
                  time I go to visit my son I feel terrible. There is no
                  atonement or forgiveness.