Report: 241 Children Orphaned by Domestic Homicides in Israel Since 2020
A report by the Michal Sela Forum shows that 241 children were orphaned in Israel by domestic homicides from 2020 to November 2026. The findings reveal a dramatic surge in orphaned minors and child victims, prompting urgent calls for state-backed professional support.
A new report released by the Michal Sela Forum reveals that 241 children were orphaned in Israel following domestic homicides between the beginning of 2020 and November 8, 2026. The comprehensive document, titled "Dad Murdered Mom," was published ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, observed annually on November 25. The study tracks the statistics of minors left without a mother due to 88 maternal murders, alongside cases where children themselves were killed or targeted in domestic murder attempts.
According to the findings, the year 2025 marked a grim peak in the number of children orphaned following the murder of their mother since tracking began in 2020. During that year, 51 children lost their mothers, representing a 112.5% increase compared to 24 children in 2024. From the beginning of 2026 through the compilation of the report, an additional 33 children joined the circle of orphans.
Escalation in Domestic Murders and Child Victims
Alongside the rising number of orphans, the report highlights a sharp increase in children murdered within the family unit. In 2026 alone, four children were killed by their fathers, marking the highest annual figure during the surveyed period. In an additional harrowing incident, an eight-year-old boy survived an attempted murder after being stabbed while trying to protect his mother from her partner.
The publication follows a deadly sequence of events over recent weeks. According to the Michal Sela Forum, five mothers and a fiancée were stabbed to death by their partners inside their homes within a span of just five weeks. In several instances, young children were present at the scene, including a two-month-old infant, children aged five and six, and a 12-year-old girl. In two separate cases, a five-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl were the ones who opened the front door to police officers responding to the emergency calls.
Demographic Breakdown and Societal Impact
The report also details the demographic distribution of the victims and orphans. Out of the 88 murdered mothers, 46 were from the Jewish community (52.3%), 35 from the Arab community (39.8%), and four held foreign citizenship. In three cases, the mother's background was not specified. Among the 241 orphaned children, 127 belong to the Jewish community (52.7%) and 102 to the Arab community (42.3%).
Lilly Ben Ami, founder of the Michal Sela Forum and sister of the late Michal Sela, sharply criticized the state's handling of the crisis. She pointed out that in a functioning society, the government would systematically publish these vital statistics rather than relying on a donor-funded NGO to piece together data from media reports. Ben Ami called upon the government to establish a professional state-run support system to assist orphaned children immediately from the moment of the tragedy and to ensure they remain with extended family members without enduring bureaucratic delays.
