Bizchut - June 2025 updates

The current reality has shown, once again, that many people with disabilities continue to pay a high price — sometimes an unbearable one — since the outbreak of the war with Iran. This situation is outrageous and unacceptable, and constitutes a serious violation of the fundamental rights of people with disabilities to equality, protection and safety.

Where the state and its institutions fail to act, we step in. Over the past two weeks, we’ve been working tirelessely to address critical disability-related challenges in the context of the war.

Even now, during the ceasefire, we are not stopping our advocacy. We continue to push for long-term solutions to ensure that people with disabilities are protected in times of emergency—because they deserve to live in safety and dignity, just like every other citizen of Israel.

People with Disabilities Must Not Be Abandoned Without Accessible Shelters

After receiving numerous requests from people with disabilities who lack access to safe and accessible shelters, we filed a petition to the High Court of Justice last Thursday. The petition demands that the state immediately provide protective solutions for individuals facing life-threatening danger due to inaccessible shelters during missile attacks.

We also called on the Court to instruct local authorities to proactively contact residents with disabilities to assess their needs and provide temporary accessible housing solutions where necessary. 

Emergency Discussion in the Knesset's Labor and Welfare Committee

On Tuesday, we participated in an emergency session of the Knesset’s Labor and Welfare Committee,  dedicated to this issue. We shared the many testimonies we’ve received from people with disabilities who lack shelter in their home or building, and cannot reach a nearby shelter due to mobility limitations. We also emphasized the difficulties faced by people with autism— some of whom cannot use a shared or public shelter due to extreme sensitivity to noise and crowds.

We stressed that these individuals are being abandoned, as the state and local authorities currently provide no effective solutions for their safety. We also highlighted the severe shortage of personnel in some residential care facilities, which leaves residents unable to reach shelters during alarms. Again, people with disabilities are being left behind.

To the full post >>>>(Hebrew)

See the Ynet article >>> (Hebrew)

Providing individual support

While Fighting for Systemic Change While advocating for policy reform, we’re also addressing urgent individual requests. One such case involves a woman who uses a wheelchair, has intellectual developmental disability, and a psychosocial disability. She lives independently with the support of a caregiver. Her apartment has no secure room (Mamad), and the building’s shelter is inaccessible — requiring descent down 12 narrow stairs, impossible to navigate in a wheelchair, especially in an emergency. The nearby public shelter is also inaccessible due to multiple staircases at the entrance.

When missiles are launched, she has no choice but to remain in her home, putting her life in serious danger.

Following a letter we sent to the Mayor of Be’er Sheva, the Commander of the Home Front Command, and the CEO of Amidar (Israel’s national housing company), demanding an urgent solution, Amidar responded with two offers: an accessible apartment in Arad that includes a secure room for the long run, and a protected shelter unit for the following weekend.

Still No Real-Time Alert Solutions for People with Hearing Disabilities – How Long Can This Go On? 

Back in April 2024, we petitioned the High Court of Justice, demanding that Home Front Command missile alerts be made accessible to people who are Deaf or hard of hearing. We specifically called for a reliable, real-time system that does not rely on a mobile app.

Many users reported serious problems with the app: delayed alerts, missed alerts, or the inability to monitor their phones around the clock—for example, while sleeping or showering.

Although the state acknowledged responsibility and promised to find solutions—nothing has changed. No effective alert system has been introduced.

When the war with Iran broke out, the urgency intensified. People with hearing disabilities were forced to navigate these barriers on a daily basis—often at grave risk to their lives.

We have kept up the pressure through legal channels, the media and public advocacy: We submitted an urgent motion to the High Court, gave a media interview to Israel Hayom to raise awerness, and participated in a Home Front Command Zoom briefing for people with hearing disabilities.

Unfortunately, there is still no real-time, accessible solution.We will not stop fighting until there is.

Urgent Knesset Discussion on the Need for Community Supporters for People with Disabilities in times of Emergency During the same Knesset session held last Tuesday, we once again raised the urgent need for community supporters in times of emergencies—a subject we have repeatedly emphasized in discussions about emergency regulations. The discussion was initiated by MK Michal Woldiger and other members of the Knesset.

Community supporters are individuals whose role is to reach out to people with disabilities and the elderly during emergencies, identify their needs, and provide them with support.

In the discussion, we explained that the only feasible way to immediately staff the necessary personnel for this role is through emergency military reserve mobilization (Tzav 8) of Home Front Command soldiers.

The committee chairperson had suggested creating a volunteer-based system for this role—but we emphasized that such a plan is not practicle. Experience shows that in real-time emergencies, it is simply not possible to recruit such a large number of volunteers quickly enough.

MK Michal Woldiger supported our position.We will continue to advocate for this issue in upcoming discussions regarding the Emergency Regulations for people with disabilities.