The Knesset Labor and Welfare Committee is expected on Monday to approve 1 billion shekel to fund assistance to victims of the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre. The final agreement offers a one-time sum ranging from 7,180 shekels to 28,720 shekels, based on certain criteria and a refund of rehabilitation costs totaling up to 30,000 shekels.
Members of family of survivors who were witness to the events, most residents of the city of Ofakim, and adults whose parents were killed in the massacre could fall through the cracks and receive very little or no compensation.
The existing law does not recognize family members who were witness to the massacre by phone or text or those who were already recognized as victims of terror attacks. The funds allotted to cover the needs of those impacted by the massacre are insufficient to cover the costs of medical and emotional rehabilitation and care.
People attempting to escape Hamas massacre at the Nova festival
Osnat Hasson, the mother of Nova survivor Elad who represented the parents of survivors of the festival, said she is not eligible for government funds despite the support she has been giving her son. "I cannot work full time, and most of the parents of survivors are in the same position," she said. "My son now depends on me and cannot hold down a job." She said the government should take responsibility and recognize her family and others like it as victims and provide a respectable and adequate response.
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Efrat Eton, who heads the "Secure Heart" non-profit, has been providing emotional support for Nova survivors and their families. She said the government has caused fights among families that were impacted instead of learning the different needs and providing appropriate responses. "It is wrong that some survivors who want to rehabilitate would be given disability compensation while others who witnessed their loved ones' trauma and have been providing them with support, are ignored," she said. "This is a moral duty and in the national interest."
Residents of Ofakim, living in the quarter that was overrun by the terrorists on Oct. 7 were allotted only a few thousand shekels.