In her book “On Their Dead Bodies,” Dr. Meira Weiss, the Israeli doctor and anthropology expert, stated the harvesting of the organs and mentioned that in the period between 1996 and 2002, Dr. Weiss was at the Abu Kabir Institute of Forensic Medicine in Tel Aviv to do scientific research, and there she saw how the organs were getting stolen, especially from Palestinian corpses.
She said, “During my time at the institute, I witnessed how they would ‘take’ organs from a Palestinian body and not ‘take’ anything from the soldiers in return.” She added, “They would take corneas, skin, and heart valves, while noting that non-professionals would not notice the absence of these organs as they would place something plastic in place of the corneas and ‘take’ the skin from the back so that the family wouldn’t see it. In addition, the bodies of detained martyrs are used in medical colleges at Israeli universities for research purposes.” Weiss confirmed that “in the first Intifada, the army effectively allowed the institute to extract organs from Palestinians under a military procedure that required the autopsy of a Palestinian prisoner. The autopsy procedure was accompanied by organ removal, which was used by the Israeli Skin Bank established in 1985 to treat burns suffered by Israeli soldiers. This was after the Chief Rabbinate Council issued a ruling legitimizing it, which led to saving the lives of many Israelis who were injured during attacks on Palestinian citizens, continuous assaults, and wars — at the expense of Palestinian martyrs, according to specialized Israeli medical sources for burn treatment.”
Weiss also confirms the use of organs stolen by other organ banks in the Israeli occupation state for transplantation, research, and medical education. She added that many institute workers discussed during the interviews conducted by Weiss the period of the first Intifada, from 1987 to 1993, describing it as “good days” when organs were harvested permanently and freely, compared to any other period.
The Israeli Ministry of Health sent a written response to Al Jazeera, stating that “it used to happen.” However, today they claim that organs are taken according to the law and with prior consent, without specifying which entity issues the approvals: whether it is the courts in the occupation state, its army, or its administrative and political institutions. On November 23, 2015, the Israeli Channel 2 aired an investigative report revealing that the Israeli Institute of Forensic Medicine was involved in stealing organs from the bodies of Palestinian martyrs detained by the Israeli occupation. The investigation included testimonies from former head of the Israeli Institute of Forensic Medicine, Yehuda Hiss, acknowledging that human organs, tissues, and skin were taken from the bodies of Palestinian martyrs without the knowledge or consent of their families.
The issue in the real, not anti Israel, world is opt-in/opt-out donor policies. Up to about 20 years ago Israel was an opt-out country. If you don't want to donate you or your survivors have to opt out, otherwise you're a donor. Don't know if that was law or custom, many countries don't address the issue. At that time organs were taken from palestinians, Israelis, even IDF members without permission That's how it's done in opt-out countries. Not just palestinians as some articles suggest, everyone. The law was changed to opt-in about 20 years ago, so now permission is required.
A couple of links if you're interested in the topic. You can find others.
Presumed vs Expressed Consent in the US and Internationally
Assessing Global Organ Donation Policies: Opt-In vs Opt-Out
Comparison of organ donation and transplantation rates between opt-out and opt-in systems