Trending Now - Settlers Compel Palestinian Family to Disturb Father's Grave

WHO:

[NPR] - The Palestinian family involved is the Asasa family, specifically Mohammed Asasa and his deceased father, Hussein Asasa.

[NPR] - The Israeli military confirmed the coordination of the burial with the Asasa family.

[NPR] - Ajith Sunghay is the head of the United Nations Human Rights Office for the occupied Palestinian territory.

WHAT:

[NPR] - Israeli settlers forced the Asasa family to exhume and rebury Hussein Asasa's body from the cemetery.

[NPR] - The settlers threatened the family, stating, "Either you take the dead body away right now or we'll use a bulldozer to remove him from the grave and dump him for you."

[NPR] - The Asasa family had to carry Hussein Asasa's body away from the cemetery after the settlers dug up the grave.

[NPR] - The Israeli military confiscated digging tools from the settlers but did not intervene to stop them from exhuming the body.

WHERE:

[NPR] - The incident occurred in the Asasa village cemetery, located south of Jenin in the occupied West Bank.

[NPR] - The settlement involved is called Sa-Nur, located approximately 300 meters from the Asasa village cemetery.

WHEN:

[NPR] - The grave exhumation occurred on a Friday, shortly after Hussein Asasa's burial.

[NPR] - The Israeli government allowed the return of the settlement to the area last year.

WHY:

[NPR] - The settlers claimed the grave was too close to the settlement, prompting their actions against the Asasa family.

[NPR] - The increase in attacks on Palestinians by Israeli settlers has been noted since the Hamas-led attack on Israel from Gaza in October 2023.

HOW:

[NPR] - The settlers used weapons and spades to dig up the grave.

[NPR] - The Asasa family had coordinated the burial with the Israeli military, obtaining the necessary permits to bury Hussein Asasa.

(UPDATED May 11, 2026 01:30 UTC)

In a troubling incident in the occupied West Bank, Israeli settlers forced the Asasa family to exhume and rebury the body of Hussein Asasa, with threats of using a bulldozer if they did not comply. The Israeli military confirmed that they coordinated the burial with the Asasa family and confiscated digging tools from the settlers but did not intervene during the exhumation. Ajith Sunghay, head of the United Nations Human Rights Office for the occupied Palestinian territory, has noted an increase in attacks on Palestinians by Israeli settlers since the Hamas-led assault on Israel from Gaza in October 2023.