Posted on 10/10/2025 1:30:06 PM PDT by CondoleezzaProtege
Two years after the outbreak of the war against the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Israeli authorities have released a new overall toll of military and civilian casualties. According to Channel 12, the Ministry of Defense, the National Insurance Institute, and the Eran (Emergency Psychological Assistance) association have released "unprecedented numbers" of victims, injuries, and people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Since the conflict began on October 7, 2023, 1.152 Israeli military and security forces personnel have died, 42 percent of whom were under the age of 21. The victims include 1.035 members of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), 100 police officers, nine Shin Bet members, and eight members of Shabas (the prison service). According to the report, over 6.500 people have joined the "family of national mourning," including nearly 2.000 parents, 351 widows, and 885 orphans.
On the civilian front, the National Insurance Institute reports 978 Israeli citizens killed in attacks and bombings since the start of the war, including 62 minors. Furthermore, 80 people are recognized as victims of "acts of hostility," most of whom (over 30) suffered psychological trauma. The conflict has also had serious mental and social repercussions. The Eran association reports receiving 637 requests for help in two years, with a sharp increase in cases related to depression, anxiety, isolation, and relationship problems. "Almost one in two calls concerns post-traumatic stress disorder or direct bereavement," the organization stated. Over 120 military personnel and reservists reportedly turned to psychological support services for "loneliness and acute stress."
Channel 12 reports that, overall, the government has paid over 1,7 billion shekels (approximately €420 million) in compensation and benefits for the families of victims and civilians affected by physical or psychological trauma.
(Excerpt) Read more at agenzianova.com ...
While I have, that knowledge predates me and VDH.
I read the whole article you posted carefully, but I didn't see that surprising statistic in it. Do you have a reference for that? That would be remarkable if true.
Religious = ‘dati’
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-821800
...Among the respondents, secular individuals make up the largest portion of the population (43.5%). They are followed by non-religious traditionalists (18.9%), religious traditionalists (13%), religious (12.5%), and lastly, ultra-Orthodox (11.3%)...
About 15% of Israelis identify themselves as religious Zionist
Here is a correction from a different article from the same newspaper source you referenced:
The Jerusalem Post: 90% of Israeli Jews call themselves Zionists
Whomever qualifies or doesn't qualify as "religious" in Israel is just semantics.
Dati Leumi ‘religious nationalist’ - has a specific meaning in Israel.
So nearly 100% of religious Israeli’s are Zionists, but only about 15% of Israelis are religious. If the Zionist claim on the land is merely racial and not religious, then it is difficult to see any reason why Abraham’s son Isaac’s Jewish descendants have any more claim on the land than Abraham’s son Ishmael’s Muslim descendants.
The numbers and the terms are tricky. “Religious Zionist” is a particular category.
Wikipedia says, “Religious Zionism (Hebrew: צִיּוֹנוּת דָּתִית, romanized: Tziyonut Datit) is a religious denomination that views Zionism as a fundamental component of Orthodox Judaism.”
So you can be religious and a Zionist without being a “religious Zionist” if you aren’t Orthodox or don’t think of Zionism as a fundamental part of your religion.
Thank you, that (sort of) helps! The political motivations and the religious identities in Israel seem to be intermingled in a unique way.
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