As Israel prepares to observe Memorial Day, the Defense Ministry has announced the updated total of 25,417 military casualties since 1860. This figure includes 316 new fallen soldiers and 61 disabled veterans who died from injuries sustained in previous wars and were officially recognized this year as fallen soldiers.
The Ministry also reported that 5,229 Israeli civilians have been killed in acts of terrorism since the establishment of the Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel in 1851. Among the civilian casualties, 800 were children and teenagers under the age of 18. In the past year alone, 79 additional civilians have died in terrorist attacks. Since the onset of the current war, 934 civilians have been killed, including 778 in the October 7 massacre.
Currently, there are 8,674 bereaved parents, 5,391 widows, 10,302 orphans and 34,250 bereaved siblings in Israel. The total number of family members affected by these losses stands at 58,617, with 5,944 new bereaved families added following the "Swords of Iron" conflict. In the last year, 1,647 more individuals have joined this group, including 487 parents, 85 widows, 163 orphans and 912 siblings.
On Tuesday, April 29, at 8:00 PM, a one-minute siren will be sounded nationwide to mark the beginning of Memorial Day. Memorial services will follow across the country, with the central ceremony taking place at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. On Wednesday at 11:00 AM, another siren will be heard and memorial services will be held at military cemeteries and memorial sites. A flyover of fighter jets will take place at 11:02 AM over the Mount Herzl military cemetery and national memorial hall.
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“Memorial Day is not just a sad day – it is a sacred day,” said Arie Moalem, Director of the Families and Commemoration Division at the Ministry of Defense. “The memory of the fallen is a perpetual flame.”