170 soldiers killed since last Yom Hazikaron

Some 170 Israeli soldiers have been killed during their military service since last Yom Hazikaron, according to figures released by the Defense Ministry on Thursday ahead of Israel’s Memorial Day for fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism.

Another 54 disabled veterans died over the past year due to complications from wounds sustained during their service and were also recognized as fallen service members.

The updated data brings the total number of those who have died in defense of the country since 1860—when Jewish residents began establishing neighborhoods outside Jerusalem’s Old City walls—to 25,644, the ministry said.

The annual figures include members of the Israel Defense Forces, police and other security services who died in the line of duty, as well as those whose deaths resulted from accidents, illness or suicide related to their service.

According to the Defense Ministry, Israel’s circle of military bereavement now includes 59,583 family members, including parents, widows, children and siblings of the fallen. Since the Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, 7,165 additional relatives have joined the bereaved community.

Yom Hazikaron will begin at 8 p.m. on Monday with a nationwide one-minute siren, followed at 11 a.m. on Tuesday by a two-minute siren ahead of memorial ceremonies at Israel’s 52 military cemeteries.

Ceremonies this year will be conducted in accordance with IDF Home Front Command wartime guidelines due to ongoing security concerns, the Defense Ministry said.

“We are completing preparations for Memorial Day and preparing to commemorate the fallen and hold events in accordance with Home Front Command guidelines, out of a desire to strike the right balance between the sanctity of Memorial Day and the sanctity of life,” said Aryeh Moalem, head of the ministry’s department for the families of fallen soldiers, commemoration and heritage.

“The memory of the fallen is a foundation of our unity,” he added. “Behind every name stand families and great pain, but also a strength that continues to pulse through and connect us all.”