High Court rules reservist who died by suicide won’t be buried in military cemetery
Rejecting appeal by family, justices say Maj. (res) Asaf Dagan can have a military ceremony in a civilian plot, as agreed by army and Defense Ministry
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The High Court of Justice on Sunday ruled that a member of the army reserves who died by suicide in October should be given a military funeral, but that he be interred in a civilian cemetery, rejecting an appeal by the bereaved family.
Maj. (res) Asaf Dagan was not in active service when he shot himself with his handgun on October 23, which made him ineligible for a military burial. Still, his family began a legal battle to secure one for him.
A panel of three justices said that it had previously suggested to Defense Minister Israel Katz that a military ceremony be held for Dagan in a civilian cemetery and that “the minister accepted the court’s proposal.”
They noted that the family had said last week they would accept the compromise if their demand that Dagan be buried in a military cemetery is rejected.
Last week Katz and the Israel Defense Forces said that they would agree to the arrangement. Though the family said in a statement that it was grateful for the compromise, Dagan’s mother, Miri, appealed to the High Court, insisting he deserved a full military burial.
Dagan suffered from PTSD but would regularly show up for reserve duty, according to his family. A key element of the case was that Dagan had shot himself as he was heading to report for reserve duty.
The call-up notice had been sent to him as a text message rather than in a formal order from the army, according to Hebrew media reports. While the family said that qualified him as an active reservist, the military disagreed.
In its ruling, the court further said such matters as giving Dagan a military gravestone, and including him in the official “Yizkor” listing of fallen soldiers and annual military memorial ceremonies should be a matter of direct discussion between the family and the IDF.
“The details of the funeral, its location, and the matter of the tombstone will be agreed upon between military authorities, in accordance with accepted customs, with the goal of honoring the memory of the air force officer,” the court said.
Yuval Yoaz, an attorney representing the family, said in a statement that the court had indicated to the army and the Defense Ministry that Dagan’s memory “should be honored with action, not just words.”
He said he hoped the IDF and the ministry will “act in the spirit of the ruling, and give Asaf the full honor he deserves as a fallen soldier.”
“The IDF went to great lengths to reach an agreed-upon outline with the family, in accordance with a High Court decision, which will help the family bring the late Asaf to a dignified burial,” the military said last week in announcing it would accept the compromise.
Dagan was a combat navigator in the IAF for 20 years and served in the Second Lebanon War. Before then, he served in the Paratroopers Brigade.
When he was released from duty in the IAF, he served as a reservist in the Intelligence Directorate’s Unit 8200, which required annual service in the reserves.
