On March 28, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu phoned Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon to order him to stop returning to the Palestinian Authority (PA) the bodies of Palestinians killed while attacking Israelis. Netanyahu’s order stands in stark contrast to the firm opinion of Ya’alon and many others in the defense establishment who believe that keeping the bodies will not only fail to deter potential terrorists, but might actually increase the motivation among Palestinians to launch revenge attacks.
Ya’alon was at the same time considering more than just security. He was also taking moral considerations into account. In a meeting of the Security Cabinet in October, Ya’alon had expressed his reservations about a demand by ministers from HaBayit HaYehudi and Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan to keep the Palestinians' bodies. He reportedly said, “Israel doesn’t deal in dead bodies.” At that same meeting, Ya’alon claimed that keeping the bodies could lead to the abduction of soldiers, who would then be used as bargaining chips to obtain the bodies' return.
