The Inner Forces

Inner Forces is an initiative dedicated to strengthening and supporting the families of IDF soldiers and security force personnel. The initiative was founded on the understanding that family is the foundation of resilience for the soldiers, the community, and the nation as a whole.

The initiative works to enhance personal, family, and community resilience through resilience programs; accessible information, guidance, and practical support for families on broad and individual issues alike; assistance in claiming rights; development of long-term infrastructures and programs; and promotion of public policies that would expand recognition and support for families in the areas of resilience, employment, and education.

All of this is done to enable families to cope with the challenges of war and complex daily realities, to find resilience, community connection, and meaning, and to maintain healthy functioning and a good and stable routine over time.

The massive mobilization of over 500,000 reservists and active-duty soldiers during the Iron Swords war (the October 7 war) means that about 30% of Israel’s population is experiencing direct impact – emotionally, financially, occupationally, and socially. Research shows that the family is a major source of resilience and support for service members, especially in intensive combat roles. Yet, families receive neither adequate recognition nor sufficient emotional, social, or logistic support.

The prolonged war and heightened security situation are creating a reality of ongoing stress, uncertainty, and exhaustion, and many soldiers and their families will carry its long-term consequences, often without seeking professional help. At the same time, Israel’s mental health system remains under heavy strain. In this reality, support from the community, family, and civil society becomes not only important but a national necessity.

During the war, we conducted a study with the Ruppin Academic Center Health Research Center examining the experiences of mothers of combat and combat support soldiers in the Iron Swords war. The findings showed that many suffer from ambiguous loss, an emotional state of prolonged anxiety and distress caused by constant uncertainty about the safety of their serving children. The study also revealed physical and psychological effects such as chronic fatigue, reduced functioning at home and at work, loneliness, social withdrawal, and loss of meaning. Yet despite their personal struggles, many mothers showed strong awareness of their children’s emotional states and encouraged them to seek help when needed.

These findings highlight the need for public recognition, group and community support, access to information, assistance in claiming rights and benefits, and a peer community where mothers feel understood and accepted. The study also showed that mothers can drive positive change for all service member families, and we believe that mothers and grandmothers can serve as anchors for both the soldiers and the entire family.

(Read more: Maariv article on the research – in Hebrew https://www.maariv.co.il/news/israel/article-1242951)

The initiative was created to provide meaningful support to the immediate circle of service members, the parents, spouses, siblings, grandparents, and grandmothers who remain at home, outside the public discourse, yet carry the emotional burden of their loved ones’ service. The initiative works to rebuild and strengthen the connection between service member families, the military, and the state, based on the understanding that behind every service member stands a family that supports them and draws strength from their well-being. It aims to strengthen family resilience and create a continuous support system that responds to changing needs. In the coming years, many needs will emerge from the long-term impact of the war, and even in routine times, a child’s enlistment is a challenging transition, which is why the initiative focuses on families who have yet to receive coordinated support, while soldiers already do.

The activity focuses on personal and family resilience, community, employment, and education through resilience programs, information, referrals, practical guidance, and assistance in claiming rights. In parallel, the initiative will build long-term infrastructure and programs that bring the voices and needs of families to decision makers to create a better reality for them.

Join us in one of today's most vital missions: supporting the families of those who serve. This is our national mission.