23,320 Israeli flags being placed on graves of fallen soldiers

Military officials across the country are placing 23,320 flags at half-mast on the graves of soldiers, police officers, and other security personnel who have fallen throughout the history of the State of Israel and the Zionist movement, as the state prepares to mark Memorial Day at sundown Tuesday.

Israel will come to a standstill Tuesday evening at 8 p.m. for a minute-long memorial siren to commemorate the country’s fallen soldiers and terror victims. The siren will be followed by the lighting of a memorial flame for the fallen at the Western Wall, the site of the official state commemoration ceremony.

On Wednesday, another official memorial ceremony will be held at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem and will be attended by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot, as well as senior Israel Defense Forces officers and politicians. At 1 p.m. Wednesday, a separate commemoration for Israel’s terror victims will take place at Mount Herzl.

Memorial Day will end abruptly at sundown Wednesday with the start of Independence Day, traditionally ushered in with fireworks and street celebrations nationwide.

Illustrative photo of soldiers standing near the graves of fallen comrades at the Mount Herzl military cemetery, Jerusalem, ahead of Memorial Day, 2012. (photo credit: Gili Yaari/Flash90)