Israeli Court Rules Hamas Missile Strike Injury a Work Accident
A judge at the Beersheba Regional Labor Court has ruled that an injury sustained while entering a shelter during a Hamas missile attack constitutes a work accident. Judge Avigail Borovitch rejected the National Insurance Institute's claim that such an injury should be classified as an act of hostility.
The ruling, which came on the fifth day of the Swords of Iron War (October 11, 2023), involved an employee of Barzilai Hospital in Ashkelon. The employee was heading to his car when missile interceptions began without an air raid siren. He ran back towards his home, tripped on a sidewalk, and injured his ankle. He then entered a home shelter, but a missile struck nearby before he could close the door.
The National Insurance Institute had recognized the ankle injury as a work accident but classified subsequent post-traumatic stress and hearing damage from the missile impact as an act of hostility. Judge Borovitch cited the National Insurance Law, which states that an accident occurring during a commute to or from work is considered a work accident. She emphasized that risks encountered on the way to work, over which the employee has no unique control, are considered part of the work conditions.
Borovitch stated that the missile strike, which occurred while the employee was already in his shelter, was part of his commute. She noted that the employee acted to save his life in accordance with Home Front Command instructions. The judge added that in the period following the October 7th attacks, any outing involved risk, and the missile attack was intrinsically linked to the risks of the commute.
Consequently, all that occurred after the employee left his home was deemed part of his commute and thus a work accident. The National Insurance Institute was ordered to pay 5,000 shekels in expenses. Public representatives Yosef Cohen and Dina Cohen concurred with the ruling.
