For days now, Israelis have been following the fighting in the Gaza Strip. The sense of anxiety across the country has been increasing day by day. Despite the experience they’ve amassed during all the wars and battles since the founding of the state, Israelis still have a hard time coming to terms with the steep human cost that they are forced to pay. First and foremost, every soldier killed at war is a tragic loss to his family. Almost at the same time, however, the casualties quickly become part of the national mythos of the fallen soldier.

The war in Gaza is turning out to be especially brutal. Nowhere near this many soldiers have fallen in such a short time — 25 casualties in just four days — since the Second Lebanon War in the summer of 2006. The number of victims is sending new tremors through Israeli society, which has difficulty dealing with the loss. While this society may be considered strong in terms of its military might, it is also extremely fragile when it comes to dealing with its fallen soldiers.

The Casualties Unit of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) operates like a well-oiled machine. Perhaps it can be attributed to the very high number of casualties since the founding of the state (over 23,000), but regardless of the reason, the unit’s officers are meticulous about every detail of the notification and the way it is delivered. In all cases, or at least in most of them, officers from the fallen soldier’s unit inform the chief officer of the city, who is responsible for the town where the fallen soldier's parents live.

One thing that is especially fascinating is the military procedure from the moment the army learns that a soldier has been killed. There is no other country in the world that reacts toward its dead like Israeli society. It is a complex and painful process that involves keeping the name of the fallen soldier secret until the official announcement is given to the parents.