Defense Ministry Releases Updated Figures:

Marking two years since Hamas’s brutal attack on October 7, 2023, Israel’s Defense Ministry has released new data on the nation’s fallen security personnel.

Since the start of the war, 1,152 members of Israel’s security forces have been killed — including IDF soldiers, Israeli Police officers, Shin Bet agents, Prison Service personnel, and members of local security squads who served across Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, and the West Bank.

According to the ministry, approximately 42% of the fallen were under the age of 21, most of them young men serving in mandatory military service. Another 141 were over the age of 40, reflecting the broad age range of those who gave their lives in defense of the nation.

The ongoing conflict has brought over 6,500 new bereaved family members into Israel’s circle of mourning — including 1,973 parents, 351 widows, 885 orphans, and 3,481 siblings.

More than 200 of the fallen were laid to rest at Mount Herzl Military Cemetery in Jerusalem, while funerals have been conducted in 264 cemeteries and military plots across the country. To accommodate the heavy toll, 24 military plots were expanded, and new cemeteries were established. Eight fallen soldiers were transferred abroad for burial, accompanied by Defense Ministry representatives.

The ministry’s Department for the Families of Fallen Soldiers, Commemoration, and Heritage has overseen the burials, renovation and creation of memorials, and the provision of ongoing emotional and financial assistance to the bereaved.

As part of its response, the department has implemented a 60 million NIS ($18 million) reform to enhance family care and support services, established special assistance committees, and created a network of financial volunteers dedicated to helping bereaved families.

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