Number of Israeli soldiers wounded in Gaza is mounting, representing a hidden cost of war
- More than 900 soldiers wounded, 160 killed since Israel began its Gaza ground offensive in late October
- Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas, which staged a brutal attack on October 7 that killed 1,400 Israelis
Igor Tudoran spent just 12 hours inside the Gaza Strip before a missile slammed into his tank, leaving him with a life-altering injury.
“Already within the tank, I understood from the condition of my leg that I would lose it. But the question was how much of it will I lose,” he said, seated on a bed in the hospital where he has been treated since he was wounded last month.
Tudoran, 27, a reservist who volunteered for duty after the October 7 attack on southern Israel by Hamas that triggered the war, lost his right leg beneath the hip. He has kept up a positive attitude – but concedes that his hopes of becoming an electrician may no longer be possible.
Tudoran is part of a swelling number of wounded Israeli fighters, yet another sizeable and deeply traumatised segment of Israeli society whose struggles are emerging as a hidden cost of the war that will be felt acutely for years to come.
Given the large numbers of wounded, advocates worry the country is not prepared to address their needs.
“I have never seen a scope like this and an intensity like this,” said Edan Kleiman, who heads the non-profit Disabled Veterans Organisation, which advocates for more than 50,000 soldiers wounded in this and earlier conflicts. “We must rehabilitate these people,” he said.