A group of parents from the Gaza vicinity communities are concerned about the health of their children and have appealed to Minister of Culture and Sport Miri Regev (Likud) to cancel the sirens marking Israel’s Memorial Day (Yom HaZikaron) in their area, News 12 reported Tuesday morning. The sirens are scheduled to go off on Tuesday at 8 PM, at the start of Israel’s official remembrance day, and on Wednesday at 10 AM.
The parents fear that because of the trauma their children have endured in the southern part of the country this week, there will be a negative impact on the same children when they hear the siren.
In southern Israel, the sound of a siren usually means one must enter a bomb shelter in 10 to 15 seconds or less. Indeed, several casualties, including at least one death, were the direct result of individuals failing to reach shelter before a rocket landed nearby, spraying them with shrapnel.
One of the mothers wrote: “We live in Nehora, 9 miles from the Gaza Strip. The children have not yet recovered from the trauma of the past few days, and the sirens are very stressful to them and raise their anxiety level. We would be happy if you could find an alternative to the siren – such as two minutes of silence, or another solution, at least in the south, for the sake of the children who are dealing with the anxieties of war.”
Israel’s Memorial Day for the Fallen of Israel’s Wars and Victims of Terrorism will start at 8 PM Tuesday, with an official ceremony at the Western Wall plaza, immediately following the siren. The President and the Chief of Staff will speak at the event.
At 9:15 PM there will be a traditional “Songs for Remembrance” event at the Knesset, attended by the Prime Minister, the President, the Speaker of the Knesset, the President of the Supreme Court, the Chief of Staff and other senior officials.
On Tuesday evening, for the first time, a memorial ceremony will be held at Heichal Shlomo in Jerusalem for the fallen Haredi IDF soldiers. The event will accommodate the Haredi public and will include the Chief Rabbis of Jerusalem, bereaved families, Haredi soldiers of the Netzach Yehuda battalion, representatives of the Defense Ministry’s Haredi dept., rabbis, senior IDF officials and public figures.
A special broadcast will begin at 2:30 PM Tuesday, featuring a running list of the names of the fallen in the order of their demise. The list will continue to run through the conclusion of Memorial Day on Wednesday night.