Rights of Beer Sheva residents following the war with Iran
Beer Sheva, the capital of the Negev and home to some 215,000 people, has lived with security threats for many years — from rocket fire out of Gaza to the events of 7 October. But the war with Iran brought a threat of an entirely different kind: heavy ballistic missiles, a short warning time and blast power never experienced here before.
On 26 March 2026 a residential building in the city took a direct hit from an Iranian missile. Four people were killed, and nine were injured and taken to Soroka Medical Center. The hardest part: those who were killed were inside the safe room — a protected space built to an older standard, which partly collapsed when the missile struck the sixth floor.
The impact of this event reached far beyond the building itself. For thousands of Beer Sheva residents, the realisation that the safe room — the place you run to in order to be safe — no longer guarantees safety changed something deep. Since then, many have reported difficulty going into the safe room, panic at every siren, and sleep that has not returned to normal.
What the war with Iran did differently
Under rocket fire from Gaza, residents of the south had only seconds — but also years of experience. The ballistic missiles from Iran changed the rules:
- The force of the blast — damage and noise felt at great distances from the point of impact, even by people who lived far from the scene
- Night-time barrages — sirens that woke entire families again and again, for weeks on end
- A shaken sense of protection — once it became clear that even a standard safe room is not immune in every scenario
- Prolonged uncertainty — not a one-off event that ended, but a long period of constant alertness
The result: the number of people in the city affected by anxiety is far larger than the number of those who were physically present at the impact sites.
Even without a physical injury — you may be a hostile-action casualty
This is the point most residents miss. You do not need to be hit by shrapnel to be recognised. The law also recognises psychological injury caused by the very exposure to the event — as well as indirect physical injuries that happened because of the event rather than directly from it:
- People who fell, tripped or were hurt while running to a safe room or shelter
- People injured by glass shattered by the blast wave
- People who suffered a cardiac event or felt unwell during a siren
- People who had an acute anxiety attack or shortness of breath as a result of the stress
- People who witnessed the impact site or its aftermath
- People evacuated from their homes because of damage to the building
The signs to watch for
An anxiety reaction during a siren is completely normal. What justifies a check is when the symptoms continue after the events are over and affect your functioning:
- Difficulty falling asleep, broken sleep or recurring nightmares
- Alarm at sudden noises — a slamming door, a motorbike, a siren
- Difficulty going into the safe room, or refusing to go in
- Avoiding leaving the house, or avoiding being far from a protected space
- Irritability, a short fuse and uncharacteristic outbursts
- Difficulty concentrating and reduced functioning at work
- Social withdrawal and emotional detachment
- Physical symptoms with no medical explanation — chest pressure, stomach aches, dizziness
In children the picture looks different: bedwetting that has returned, refusing to go to kindergarten, clinging to parents, or repetitive play around sirens and war.
Why is it surfacing only now?
A question we hear often: “I got through the war fine — so why is it hard for me now?” During the event itself, the mind is mobilised for survival and functioning. Only when the pressure eases and routine returns do the body and mind begin to process what happened. That is why PTSD sometimes appears weeks or months later — and the fact that the symptoms appeared late does not rule out entitlement.
Which rights may be available?
- Recognition as hostile-action casualties
- Determination of a psychological disability percentage
- A monthly allowance or a grant, according to the percentage determined
- Psychological treatment and medication funded by the state
- Vocational rehabilitation for those whose injury disrupted their working life
- Reimbursement of medical expenses
- Tax benefits and benefits in other areas
The structure of entitlement under the hostile-action casualty track: 0%–9% — no payment (an appeal can be filed); 10%–19% — a one-off grant; 20% and above — a fixed monthly allowance.
Psychological treatment — even before recognition
A point many people are unaware of: you do not have to wait for the recognition process to end in order to get help. The National Insurance Institute provides people affected by anxiety with initial psychological treatment at no cost to them, and alongside this the health funds run support centres and there is a dedicated round-the-clock helpline for people with PTSD. Seeking treatment is both a helpful step in itself and the basis for the documentation the committee will need.
Documentation — what determines the outcome
With a psychological injury there is no scan that shows the damage; the documents are everything. What is important to gather:
- A psychiatric or psychological diagnosis documenting the disorder and its connection to the events of the war
- Treatment summaries and continuity of treatment over time — not a single visit
- Records of your first contact for help: an emergency hotline, your health fund, an emergency room
- Sick notes or confirmation of absence from work
- A detailed description of the effect on your functioning — at work, in the family, in daily life
- Documentation linking you to the time and place: evacuation confirmations, a building damage report
Who else in Beer Sheva may be entitled
The circle of entitlement is wider than most people assume:
- People who were at the impact site or near it — even without a physical injury
- Neighbours and residents of nearby buildings who experienced the blast, the noise and the aftermath of the strike
- Family members of casualties, under certain conditions
- Rescue workers and volunteers who were exposed to difficult scenes
- Healthcare workers who received and treated the wounded
- Students at Ben-Gurion University who lived through the period in the city, even if they are not permanent residents
- Children and teenagers — in whom the symptoms look entirely different
Common mistakes that cost dearly
- “I’m fine, others suffered more” — in a city where people were killed, many play down their own difficulties by comparison. Entitlement is assessed according to your condition, not someone else’s.
- Waiting for it to pass — the earlier treatment begins, the better both the recovery and the documentation.
- Putting on a brave face at the committee — describe your hard days, not your good days.
- Describing symptoms without their effect on functioning — not “I have anxiety”, but “I can’t bring myself to go into the safe room” or “I’ve stopped sleeping in my own room”.
- Giving up after a rejection — every decision carries a right of appeal within a limited time, and in many cases that is exactly where the outcome changes.
Even if months have passed
Quite a few residents are only getting in touch now, months after the events — feeling that “maybe it is already too late”. It is not too late. Entitlement is assessed according to your current psychological condition and its effect on your functioning, not according to the date of the event. What does matter is to start documenting from today, because every month without documentation is a month that is harder to explain after the fact.
Beer Sheva residents — you do not have to face this alone
The process with the National Insurance Institute is complex: forms, medical committees, documents and deadlines. The right support helps you understand what you are entitled to, how to prepare for the committee and which further rights exist — precisely at a time that is already hard enough.
An initial eligibility check commits you to nothing, and can open a door to rights you did not know about.