Visiting the mourning tent for Muhammad Abu Khdeir

On Facebook, I just saw a story from Tag Meir about the visit to the mourning tent of the family of Muhammad Abu Khdeir yesterday. 

"350 Israelis came yesterday to the mourning tent of Suha and Hussein Abu Khdeir in Shuafat and comforted them one by one along the row of mourners.

Those who held back (from protesting) the burning and desecration of 34 mosques and churches were shocked that Jews burned an Arab boy to death.

In building friendship and peace between the peoples we will be comforted."

I went yesterday with the group and it was very sad. There are two mourning tents, one where the men of the family are sitting, and the other, right next to the house, where the women, including Suha, are sitting. I went into the men's tent and shook hands with a line of men of the family, and then went to the women's tent and sat while women went up to Suha to offer her comfort. She was distraught and crying as the row of women came up to her, one by one. 

Photograph by Yossi Zamir, photographer for Tag Meir. The woman with the blue head-covering is Suha Abu Khdeir.

I was talking with some of Muhammad's cousins and told them that there are in fact Jews and Israelis who are very upset with his murder and condemn it. One of them talked about the lies that were spread about him before the murder suspects were arrested. In the days before the arrests, rumors spread on social media that he was gay and was killed by his family in an "honor killing." I don't know who was the originator of those lies, but they should be ashamed of themselves for what they did.