The New York Times · 14 May 1984

CP-1984-051

Israel Exhumes Hijackers’ Bodies

By DAVID K. SHIPLER

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Transcribed from the clipping

JERUSALEM, May 13 — The bodies of two Arab terrorists who hijacked an Israeli bus last month have been exhumed for second autopsies, a well-placed Defense Ministry official said today. The new autopsies were ordered by an internal commission appointed by Defense Minister Moshe Arens to investigate the circumstances surrounding their deaths, the official said.

The commission was established after it became known that Israeli photographers had taken pictures of the two hijackers as they were being led away from the bus after an assault by Israeli troops. Two other hijackers were killed during the attack.

From the photographs, the two have been identified by relatives and neighbors in their village in the Gaza Strip as cousins, named Majdi and Subhi Abu-Jumaa. The Israeli military censor has banned publication of the pictures.

Held 35 Passengers Hostage The four terrorists commandeered the bus, which was on its regular run from Tel Aviv south to Ashkelon, held about 35 passengers hostage and forced the driver to speed into the Gaza Strip, where they demanded the release of 500 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the safety of the hostages.

After a 10-hour standoff, Israeli troops stormed the bus, killing one Israeli woman and two of the hijackers and wounding seven other Israeli passengers. Autopsies were done on at least two of the hijackers, and possibly all four, according to official statements.

But a Defense Ministry official explained that the inquiry commission, headed by a retired general, Meir Zorea, had ordered new autopsies in the search for further details about the causes of death. The photograph of one of the two, Majdi Abu-Jumaa, shows him conscious, apparently alert and without any visible wounds.

His uncle and a neighbor who were allowed to see the body just before burial in a Gaza cemetery said that his head was covered with dried blood. His uncle also described a long incision in the abdomen, usually the sign of an autopsy.

The Defense Ministry official said that the results of the first autopsies were apparently not sufficient for the commission and that more information was required. The secret police, known as the Shin Beth, is understood to have had custody of the two men.

By the accounts of relatives of Palestinian prisoners, they were brought to Gaza Prison after the assault on the bus, but this could not be confirmed. No decision has been made about how much, if any, of the commission’s findings will be made public, especially in view of the fact that the Shin Beth usually operates out of public view.

How this transcription was made

No masthead, folio or printed date on the cut. The dateline is “JERUSALEM, May 13,” and the hijacking is “last month” (13 April 1984), so a 14 May 1984 printing is consistent with Maria’s label. The date is not on the page. — Complete story, both columns.

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