Sunday, August 07, 2005

Another battle over burial

Earlier in the week we discussed did a convicted murderer have the right to a military funeral with full honors here in the US.

In Israel, the burial of Eden Natan-Zada, who has been considered a Jewish terrorist for his recent killing of four Israeli Arabs and the wounding of over a dozen created an even larger controversy. He was killed by the mob that gathered after his shooting spree on a bus.

From the above linked article:

Defense officials had intended to bury him in a modified military ceremony, bereft of the honor guard salute and in a coffin without the Israeli flag.Furious bereaved families announced they would petition the High Court of Justice to prevent such a disgrace. They also asked Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz to intervene. Mofaz consented, ruling the murderer "unfit to be buried alongside the fallen of Israel's wars."

Right-wing extremist Itamar Ben-Gvir arrived at the house and took an active interest in the burial discussion yesterday. Ben-Gvir proposed burying Natan-Zada in Kiryat Arba, beside the grave of Baruch Goldstein, who massacred 29 Arabs at the Tomb of the Patriarchs in 1994.

The body was refused burial at several cemeteries. After the Prime Ministers office stepped into the debate his body was buried in the civilian section of the Rishon Letzion cemetery.

7 comments:

Cyberseaer said...

This one is tougher. Looks like this soldier just went off to the deep end and tried to bring alot of people with him.

I have to go with the answer I gave with the convicted murdered buried earlier. If this psycho did get an honorable discharge, then he should get a full military funreal. If he served his country with honor and grace, he deserve the honor burial.

I, of course, don't think that he was sane at the time of his death, by the way his actions tells us. I think that the mob should have disboweled him and set his body parts on fire, but that's the gypsy side coming out seeking vengence for the dead.

Unknown said...

He was AWOL at the time of the murders, and had been in trouble with the IDF before, even jailed for some of his behavior while he was in the service. So this situation isn't quite the same since he wasn't discharged with honor. I almost posted about it when it happened, but I knew I couldn't be objective since the main reason the mob killed him was their anger that the military/police did not do what they would have done if it would have been an Arab on a bus that killed and wounded people. They would have sent in the snipers and killed him no questions asked. The IDF knew he was associated with a right wing extremist group that has been outlawed and they also knew he still had his weapon. His family claims they told the IDF they were afraid he was going to do something stupid. It never ceases to amaze me that these "outlawed" groups seem to manage to be able to be found easily enough to get quoted by the newspapers so they should be fairly easy to find and arrest.

Not to mention it was an attempt to cause riots in the Israeli Arab towns to stall the disengagement. Thankfully there were no riots.

Cyberseaer said...

Then I say just throw the bastard in a hole and piss on it. He wouldn't have been honorable discharge. This guy sound like he was a bomb waiting to go off. Not trying to make lame puns here.

So, he get what he gets and the Middle East is still up for grabs. It kills me that desert land is worth so much blood.

historymike said...

It's what is under the land that makes it valuable, cyberseaer.

In Israel's case, being sandwiched among oil-producing nations, it is the close proximity to wealth that make the land valuable. If the inhabitants of the region could focus their energies on economic development (instead of war), they could get 100-200 years of being a world powerhouse.

At least, until the oil runs out.

Anonymous said...

AWOL huh ? That kinda makes a difference. Who knows what sparked or ignited while serving ? However, under the circumstances and his senseless spree for whatever reason ? No, I don't think he should have been buried militarily. If circumstances different and he'd served, honorably, as cyber said ? Then I'd say yes. As in his actions now would not negate what he did then. So often, I think, we tend to confuse the two when some things should simply be ' recognized ' as separate. Yep ! A tough one.

Scott G said...

In a way, the Israeli guy committed treason by trying to derail the peace process. He not only killed people, but he could have led Israel backwards from potential peace like the killer of Rabin did

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