Families of soldiers who died by suicide since Hamas’s October 7, 2023, onslaught have filed a petition with the High Court of Justice to demand their loved ones be fully recognized as fallen soldiers, Channel 13 reported Wednesday.

The families sought to block the implementation of recommendations made last week by a committee tasked with examining the IDF’s response to suicides linked to psychological trauma from military service. The panel had concluded that the IDF would take responsibility for soldiers who died by suicide but would stop short of classifying them as IDF casualties.

The committee ruled that only service members who die while in active service are classified as fallen soldiers, while deaths occurring after discharge — even if linked to military service — fall under separate Defense Ministry recognition categories, including “deceased as a result of service, not in service at the time of death.”

The petition, filed by the Jerusalem Institute of Justice and the Combat Diamonds Forum, which supports combat veterans with PTSD, called for full recognition of soldiers who took their own lives after service, granting........

© The Times of Israel