Thu, Jan 08, 2004 - Page 6 News List

Forensics team learns to deal with death

SUICIDE BOMBINGS Israeli forensics experts have learned to block out most of the carnage that surrounds them but, on occasion, emotions can still get the better of them

REUTERS , JERUSALEM

Fingerprints from the bomber's body are taken immediately and then put through a database for identification.

The policemen's nightmare scenario is to arrive at the scene of a bombing only to find someone they know among the dead.

At one bus bombing, unit veteran Rafi Ezra recognized the body of the driver slumped over the wheel as that of the man who used to take him to school when he was a teenager.

After a bombing, most members of the unit find it emotionally easier to cope if they remain in the dark about the victims' personal lives.

"I won't watch television or read the newspapers because I don't want to emotionally connect with the victims," Ezra said. "I try to think of what remains as a broken doll."

For many of the officers, the worst part of the job is a visit to the home of a suspected victim to collect DNA evidence for a final identification.

Watched by the distraught family, the technicians rummage through hairbrushes, perfume bottles and clothing to find DNA samples to match to the corpse.

That is usually when their emotional wall almost breaks down.

"Dealing with the dead is in many ways much easier than dealing with the living," Ezra said.

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