Defense Ministry Recognizes Veteran Israel Police Officer with PTSD
The Ministry of Defense recognized a veteran Israel Police investigator with 30% permanent disability for PTSD after years of exposure to harrowing crime scenes, severe threats, and fatal operational incidents.
A veteran Israel Police officer, who spent years in investigative and intelligence roles exposing himself to grave threats and severe crime scenes, has been officially recognized by the Rehabilitation Department at the Ministry of Defense as suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder due to his service. A medical board recently assigned him a 30 percent permanent disability rating for the psychological injury.
According to an affidavit submitted through attorney Michael Pascal, the officer enlisted in the police force in May 2008 in good health following full military service. Between 2009 and 2010, he served in an undercover role in the Jerusalem District, working to incriminate criminals. In October 2010, he sustained a head injury during a demonstration while operating as an undercover officer. Later that year, his identity was compromised after his pager number fell into the hands of criminal organization operatives. He stated that following the exposure, he and his family became targets of threats, partly because they resided in a town populated by crime syndicate members.
Between 2011 and 2013, the officer served as a homicide investigator. He recounted that within roughly nine months, he handled a series of murder cases in northern Israel, visited harrowing crime scenes, attended autopsies, and was exposed to mutilated bodies. A colleague confirmed in writing that in 2014 or 2015, the two participated in handling an incident in Jisr az-Zarqa during which they recovered the body of a man who had hanged himself.
The tipping point that reportedly severely worsened his condition occurred on September 17, 2021, when he arrived at a scene where a police officer was run over and killed by a suspect attempting evasion. A colleague who arrived simultaneously testified that the officer was visibly distraught by the gruesome sights. Following the incident, the officer began experiencing severe mental symptoms, including shortness of breath and headaches, subsequently receiving psychiatric care through his health maintenance organization and privately before being diagnosed with PTSD. Another colleague detailed a 2024 murder near Nahariya where a young woman was shot in the head by her partner.
Attorney Pascal filed a formal recognition request under the Discharged Soldiers (Pensions and Rehabilitation) Law. Following a review of the circumstances, the Rehabilitation Department acknowledged the injury and referred him to a medical board. The board permanently rated him at 30 percent disability for PTSD alongside other impairments, including moderate cognitive decline, making him eligible for a monthly stipend, a medical vehicle, housing benefits, and additional rights.
