JNS
“We are orphans. There is no such thing as half an orphan. We need help and no one is giving it to us,” says Noam Ben Ami.
“We were abandoned by the Israeli government on Oct. 7, and we continue to be abandoned to this day,” says orphan Noam Ben Ami, whose mother was murdered in Kibbutz Be’eri.
A group of approximately 60 Israelis who lost their remaining parent during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led terrorist onslaught have found themselves in a legal void, unable to receive state compensation despite becoming full orphans on that horrific day.
Under current Israeli law, individuals who lost both parents to terrorism receive comprehensive financial support and psychological assistance regardless of age. However, those over 21 who lost their final surviving parent during the Oct. 7 attack do not qualify for these benefits, as the law only recognizes the simultaneous loss of both parents as a result of an attack.
Liora Ben Tsur, spokesperson for the Atid L'Otef (Future for the Gaza Envelope) movement and one of the founders of this advocacy organization for residents of the Gaza periphery, exemplifies this legislative oversight. She lost her mother, Marcelle Talja, 63, during the Hamas attack. Ben Tsur was in the hospital, having given birth to her third child, Asif, the day before. Her father had previously died in a tractor accident on their family farm in the South Hebron Hills.
Ben Tsur’s husband, Dor, and her two older children were at home in Kibbutz Ein HaShlosha, when the Hamas attack occurred. Marcelle had been spending time with the family to help care for the children while Liora was in the hospital after the birth.
She was staying at a guest house, where she was found murdered. Liora’s brothers, who came from the South Hebron Hills to rescue the family after Liora had called them pleading for help, found their mother with treats in her hands that she had intended to give to her grandchildren.
"I have not received a single shekel of support from the country or the government," Ben Tsur testified at a Jan. 7 hearing of the Knesset Labor and Welfare Committee.
"I will go back to the Gaza periphery community to work to rebuild my life despite what happened because I believe in this country, but I have received no support. Myself and the 60 others like me are collapsing financially," she told lawmakers.
'Nothing to go back to'
"We received word from our lawyer that we were not eligible for any subsidies from the government even though our mother had been killed and we are now orphaned of both parents," Ben Ami said.
"Every other category receives help from the government except us. People who lost children, people who lost a spouse, people who lost both parents and people under the age of 21 all receive compensation. It’s just us, those who lost only one parent and are over the age of 21, who don’t receive any compensation."
In June 2024, Knesset member Yinon Azulai (Shas) introduced legislation to address this gap. The bill passed its preliminary reading but has since stalled in committee. According to the Knesset website, the bill's advancement was contingent on either merging it with a government bill within one month or proceeding with agreement from multiple ministries, including Finance, Defense and Justice.
Azulai’s spokesperson told JNS, “We received an official request from several families, among them Liora Ben Tsur and Noam Ben Ami, who were caught in a legal loophole that excluded people who lost one parent in the attack from receiving compensation. Azulai immediately worked to assist them, as he did with several other cases of people requiring assistance following Oct. 7.”
A striking disparity
According to Ben Ami, there exists a striking disparity in compensation for victims. While families of victims from the Lag B’Omer Meron stampede disaster received 500,000 shekels (about $140,000) to be split among family members as stated on the Prime Minister’s Office website, according to a Calcalist news report on Jan. 21, the relatives of Oct. 7 victims are set to receive only 14,360 shekels (about $4,000) and a rehabilitation package.
“This is absurd,” she added. “The difference here makes no sense, especially, as Meron was not a terror attack, as difficult and tragic as it was. Those who suffered from terror deserve to at least be compensated at the same level under the law.”
The Atid L'Otef organization continues to work to identify affected individuals. "There are probably more than 60 of us, but we simply don't know who they are," Ben Tsur said.
The organization is seeking others who lost their remaining parent during the Hamas attack to represent them as well and achieve recognition for everyone who falls through this legal gap. “We are calling on the public to help us identify anyone else who falls into this category and is now an orphan after losing their last surviving parent in the attack,” Ben Tsur added.
“No one is even mapping out who falls into this category, not regional councils, not the National Insurance Institute, not the government, no one, except Atid L'Otef.”
The affected group, just like many other family members and survivors of the attacks, faces heightened risks of psychological disorders and suicide. Unlike the other groups, however, they are without access to state-provided mental health support, according to Ben Tsur. “We are orphans. There is no such thing as half an orphan. We need help and no one is giving it to us,” she told the committee.
“The issue has highlighted a previously overlooked aspect of Israel's terror victim compensation laws. While these regulations have existed for years, the unprecedented scale of the Oct. 7 attack brought this particular gap into sharp focus for the first time, affecting dozens of Israeli citizens who now find themselves without legal recourse for support, said Ben Ami.
“We aren’t just fighting for those who are affected by this legal gap from Oct. 7, but for those who fell into this loophole and lost their last remaining parent in any terror attack. They also fall into this category, and we need to get everyone recognized and ensure they receive the compensation and assistance that they need to carry on,” Ben Ami said.
