BICOM

A two-minute siren sounded throughout Israel this morning and memorial events are being held across the country, marking Remembrance Day for Israel’s Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terrorism. President Shimon Peres and IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz participated in the main state event that initiated the Memorial Day at the Western Wall Plaza on Sunday evening. A total of 22,867 men and women have been killed fighting to establish or defend Israel since 1860. This was the year when the first new Jewish communities were established outside of the city walls in the Jerusalem area. It is therefore considered to mark the beginnings of the modern Jewish national enterprise in Israel. 

In the course of the last year, 183 members of the security forces – the IDF, Police, Border Police, Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and other organisations – have been killed while performing their duties. Throughout the course of the day , remembrance ceremonies will be held throughout the country, at military cemeteries and sites of battles.  At 11 am a two-minute siren will be heard at 44 military cemeteries.  As the day draws to a close, the remembrance events will end. Israel’s 63rd Independence Day celebrations will then commence. The founders of the State of Israel established this custom, in order to link the Independence Day celebrations with the high human cost involved in creating and defending Jewish statehood.