Israeli experts head to crash site

A French rescue worker inspects the remains of the Germanwings Airbus A320 at the site of the crash, near Seyne-les-Alpes, in the French Alps, on March 29, 2015. Photo: Gonzalo Fuentes

A French rescue worker inspects the remains of the Germanwings Airbus A320 at the site of the crash, near Seyne-les-Alpes, in the French Alps, on March 29, 2015. Photo: Gonzalo Fuentes

Published Mar 30, 2015

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Tel Aviv - A team of Israeli rescue and recovery experts with experience identifying body parts after suicide attacks will travel to the French Alps to help with the efforts to gather the remains of the 150 victims of last week's fatal Germanwings crash.

The eight-member team from the group Zaka is expected to arrive either late on Sunday or early on Monday, according to the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Zaka was founded by religious Jews in 1995 in response to deadly terrorist attacks that often left body parts strewn over wide areas.

Jewish religious law requires the recovery of as many body parts as possible so that a person's entire body can be buried.

Although the team will help with the overall search, a key focus is tracking down the remains of an Israeli passenger who was on Germanwings Flight 4U9525 when it crashed on its way from Barcelona, Spain, to Dusseldorf, Germany.

Lufthansa is paying for the Zaka team's travel costs at the request of the victim's family.

Sapa-dpa

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