Orders, Decorations, and Medals of Israel

The Medal of Valor, Medal of Courage, and Medal of Exemplary Conduct form the three principal decorations established by Israel’s military decorations law; the last is also known in English as the Medal of Distinguished Service.[1] They recognize different degrees and circumstances of courageous conduct, while campaign decorations mark participation in a war, campaign, or battle.[1] Citations of commendation constitute a further category, recognizing outstanding acts or exceptional contributions to state security that need not qualify for a decoration.[5]

Civilian honors recognize a wider range of contributions, from scientific and cultural achievement to public service, volunteerism, and the rescue of human life.[2][6] The Israel Prize recognizes outstanding ability and breakthroughs across scholarly, scientific, artistic, and other fields, while presidential awards recognize contributions to Israel, humanity, and society.[2][6] Recognition of the Righteous Among the Nations honors non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust.[7]

Official commemorative medals serve a different purpose: their subjects include history, culture, science, and Israel’s development and achievements.[4] They are distinct from commemorative coins, which are issued by the Bank of Israel and constitute legal tender; official state medals are issued by the Coins and Medals Corporation.[4] Thus, the term “medal” encompasses both an award recognizing conduct or achievement and an object commemorating a nationally significant subject.[1][4]

Twelve fighters from the War of Independence received the “Israel Hero” badge at a ceremony in July 1949, the earliest Israeli military distinction described in the available accounts.[5] Their recognition concerned exceptional battlefield conduct, including risking their lives to save comrades or complete missions, covering fellow soldiers, blowing up an Egyptian ship, and taking control of a truck in an Arab convoy headed to attack Haifa.[5] The later decorations law treated this pre-existing honor as equivalent to the Medal of Valor.[1]

Campaign recognition developed alongside awards for individual conduct: distribution of the War of Independence campaign mark began in 1951, followed by the Sinai Campaign mark in 1957.[8] Civilian recognition also took institutional form early in the state’s history.[6][7] Education Minister Ben-Zion Dinor initiated the Israel Prize, first awarded on April 20, 1953, on Yom HaAtzmaut, to nine Israelis, including two posthumous recipients.[6] The 1953 Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Law gave Yad Vashem a mandate that included recognizing non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews; a special committee began designating Righteous Among the Nations in 1963.[7]

Israel’s first commemorative medals and coins were issued in 1958, the state’s tenth anniversary, through an Anniversary Committee established by the Prime Minister’s Office.[4] The Israel Government Coins and Medals Corporation followed in 1961, with representatives of several ministries on its board.[4] Distribution of the State Fighters Decoration began in 1968, recognizing participation in military and military-style organizations involved in the struggle for statehood.[9]

The Decorations Law in the Israel Defense Forces, published on January 29, 1970, established the three principal military decorations and provided for campaign decorations.[1] Earlier citations for valor were converted into the Medal of Courage or Medal of Distinguished Service, while the twelve Israel Hero recipients became Medal of Valor recipients.[10] A 1979 amendment permitted awards to units of at least squad size.[10]

Later additions broadened recognition of service and civilian contribution.[2][9] The Presidential Award for Volunteerism has been awarded annually since 1974, and distribution of the Mandate Prisoners Decoration began in 1984.[2][9] President Shimon Peres initiated the Presidential Medal of Honor in 2012; designed by Yossi Matityahu, it was first awarded on March 1 of that year.[11] The Presidential Award for Civilian Heroism was established in response to acts of courage by ordinary citizens during and after the October 7, 2023 terrorist attack.[12]

The Medal of Valor, עיטור הגבורה, is Israel’s highest military decoration and is awarded by the defense minister on the chief of staff’s recommendation for supreme heroism in combat, facing the enemy and risking one’s life.[1][5] Its ribbon is yellow.[5] The Medal of Courage, עיטור העוז, is the second-highest decoration and is awarded by the chief of staff for heroism in a combat role at risk to life; its ribbon is red.[1][5] The Medal of Exemplary Conduct or Distinguished Service, עיטור המופת, recognizes a courageous act worthy of serving as an example and has a blue ribbon.[1][5] Unlike the other two, the Distinguished Service decoration may recognize bravery outside combat.[5]

Artist Dan Reisinger designed all three decorations.[5] Each consists of a metal decoration, a fabric ribbon attached to the uniform, and a badge; a further award of the same decoration is represented by a miniature badge worn on the original decoration.[5] The government determines the decorations’ form on the defense minister’s recommendation, while military orders govern award procedures and presentation ceremonies.[10]

The law permits recognition of a soldier’s act committed after June 4, 1967, while separately preserving the status of the earlier Israel Hero award.[1] It also permits qualifying awards to certain Border Police officers acting under military orders, in cooperation with the army, or in coordination with it.[1] A decoration awarded to a deceased recipient may be entrusted to a relative, and the authorized official retains discretion over whether to make an award.[1] The legal framework also contains disqualifications involving imprisonment or detention and final convictions for specified offenses, including aiding the enemy and certain serious military offenses.[10]

Mako reported that forty Medals of Valor had been awarded through 1975 and that none had been awarded since.[5] Published figures for the other decorations include 220 awards of the Medal of Courage and 602 of the Medal of Distinguished Service.[5] Shlomo Hagani and Michael Bort each received the Distinguished Service decoration twice.[5]

Citations of commendation are separate from decorations and may recognize either bravery or an exceptional contribution to state security.[5] Four command levels issue citations: chief of staff, general, division commander, and brigade commander.[5] The chief-of-staff citation recognizes an outstanding act below the level of a decoration, while the other citations are awarded by the relevant commanders; a unit citation may be attached to the unit’s flag.[5] A further chief-of-staff commendation, established in 1981, recognizes acts of exceptional importance unsuited to the other decorations and may be awarded to civilians and foreigners.[5]

Campaign decorations recognize participation in wars, campaigns, and battles under government decisions, the IDF Decorations Law, and regulations issued by the defense minister.[8] Eligibility commonly depends on a defined service period and duration, with separate provisions for casualties, certain civilian employees, and people directly supporting field forces.[8]

The War of Independence mark began distribution in 1951.[8] Eligibility includes at least four months of IDF service between February 1, 1948, and March 10, 1949; personnel killed in the war; and people whose actual participation in battles qualifies them following individual assessment.[8] People able to prove confinement to a frontier settlement for 120 consecutive days during the relevant period may also qualify.[8]

Distribution of the Sinai Campaign mark began in 1957.[8] Its criteria include at least seventy-two consecutive hours of qualifying military service during October 29–November 6, 1956, together with provisions for specified fallen personnel, Home Front Civil Guard command personnel, defense employees, and volunteer drivers.[8] In 1958, eligibility was extended to police, security-service employees, and military-industry employees.[8]

The Six-Day War mark began distribution in 1967 and generally requires at least twenty-four hours of qualifying service during June 5–11, 1967.[8] Additional provisions cover certain personnel killed or wounded in the campaign and specified civilian employees and volunteers.[8] Distribution of the War of Attrition mark began much later, on May 3, 2003.[8] Its general threshold is thirty consecutive days of regular or career service, or thirty cumulative reserve-service days, during June 11, 1967–August 8, 1970, with exceptions for missing, fallen, or wounded soldiers and provisions for certain civilians directly supporting field forces.[8]

The Yom Kippur War mark began distribution in 1974.[8] Its general requirement is three consecutive days of regular or active reserve service during October 6–24, 1973, with exceptions involving injury, illness, death, or disappearance and provisions for specified civilian defense employees and direct support to field forces.[8] The Peace for Galilee mark, distributed from 1983, generally requires three consecutive days of qualifying service during June 5–September 29, 1982, with exceptions and separate provisions for some civilians and people serving in Lebanon afterward.[8]

Distribution of the Second Lebanon War mark began in 2007.[8] Soldiers generally qualify after three consecutive days of service during July 12–August 14, 2006, with exceptions involving injury, illness, capture, death, or disappearance.[8] Certain state-institution employees, including police and prison-service personnel, and civilians supporting field forces or affected civilians may also qualify under specified conditions.[8]

The government approved the Lebanon security-zone campaign badge in March 2021 following a committee review, covering September 30, 1982–May 24, 2000.[13] Its general threshold was thirty consecutive days of qualifying regular or reserve service in an operational or training unit operating in the Lebanon sector.[13] Provisions also covered specified special-unit personnel, direct-support units, Northern Command headquarters personnel, and fallen or disabled personnel with shorter service.[13] Recognition included qualifying IDF personnel, IDF employees, and South Lebanon Army personnel; extending the award to the latter required legislation because the existing law authorized awards only to IDF soldiers.[13][14]

The Lebanon badge uses blue and white for Israel’s flag, gray for prolonged operational activity and outposts, green for vegetation, and red for casualties, losses, courage, and fighting; green and red also represent Lebanon’s flag.[13] A May 2021 enumeration listed nine campaign badges, including Operation Protective Edge alongside the other campaigns described above.[13]

The State Fighters Decoration recognizes membership in military or military-style organizations that fought for statehood from 1909 through independence.[9] Subject to ministerial committee determinations, eligible frameworks include Hashomer, Nili, Haganah, Etzel, and Lehi, generally requiring six months of membership before independence; this duration requirement does not apply to Mahal and Gahal personnel.[9] The Mandate Prisoners Decoration recognizes more than six months of British detention or imprisonment resulting from service in or membership of an organization involved in the pre-state struggle against British rule.[9] An Operational Service mark recognizes at least eighteen cumulative months in a combat unit or four consecutive months of operational activity.[9]

A 2002 ministerial committee decision established an order for wearing decorations at memorial days, state ceremonies, and official organizational events.[15] The sequence places the Israel Security Prize first, the three principal IDF decorations second, commendations third, and campaign marks fourth, with pre-state security activity marks and operational or unit insignia in a later row; it also provides a place for foreign military medals and marks.[15]

Second Lieutenant Zerubavel Horowitz received the Medal of Valor posthumously for his conduct during the War of Independence.[16] An armored commander whose vehicle was cut off during the ambush of the Nebi Daniel convoy, he remained to protect wounded soldiers and blew up the vehicle when rescue appeared impossible.[16]

Nathan Elbaz’s Distinguished Service decoration recognized an act outside combat in 1954.[5] While dismantling grenades in a tent, he heard a pin come loose; unable to throw the grenade without endangering nearby comrades, he ran away from them holding it against his chest.[5] Its explosion killed him and saved their lives.[5] During the Sinai Campaign, Yehuda Ken-Dror volunteered to drive a jeep through the Mitla Pass to draw Egyptian fire and expose enemy positions.[5] He drove about 500 meters under heavy fire, was gravely wounded, and crawled back to his comrades hours later; he died about two months afterward and received the Medal of Valor posthumously.[5]

At Ammunition Hill, paratrooper Eitan Naveh covered fellow soldiers while moving through the battlefield until he was shot and killed, a few days after his twenty-third birthday.[17] He received the Medal of Valor posthumously; thirty-six paratroopers died in the battles at Ammunition Hill, and fifteen soldiers received commendations.[17] Ami Ayalon received the Medal of Valor for the 1969 Shayetet 13 assault on Egypt’s fortified Green Island.[18] Wounded by a bullet ricochet and twice by grenades, he helped capture several positions and continued fighting until the island was under Israeli control.[18]

Moshe Levi’s Medal of Valor recognized his conduct during the Yom Kippur War.[19] After his half-track was hit and he was wounded, he led his troops against an Egyptian position, risking his life to save others and complete the mission.[19] He also directed medics to treat his wounded soldiers before attending to him.[19] Maxim Cohen, an Israeli who had moved to France, returned to fight after hearing on Yom Kippur that war had begun.[19] On the outskirts of Suez on October 24, 1973, he repeatedly drove into heavy fire to evacuate wounded soldiers after his vehicle’s commander and other crew members were hit, receiving the Medal of Courage for his actions.[19]

Uriel Hefetz, then fifty-one, drove to the Syrian front after learning of the war on October 6, 1973, and spent three weeks evacuating wounded soldiers.[19] He rescued Peretz Titkin from a burning tank without identifying himself; Titkin discovered his rescuer’s identity only years later.[19] For his wartime efforts and a later rescue operation involving schoolchildren held hostage by terrorists, Hefetz received the Medal of Distinguished Service, a Chief of Staff Citation, and the Israel Defense Prize for 1973.[19]

Avigdor Kahalani received the Medal of Distinguished Service after being badly wounded while fighting in a Centurion tank during the Six-Day War, and the Medal of Valor after the Yom Kippur War.[20] Amnon Lipkin-Shahak received the Medal of Courage twice, for the 1968 Battle of Karameh, or Operation Inferno, and Operation Spring of Youth in Beirut in 1973.[21] Lieutenant Colonel Avi Lanir received the Medal of Courage posthumously in April 1976 after being tortured and dying in Syrian captivity without revealing information; his citation recognized “courage, loyalty and supreme sacrifice.”[5]

The first Israel Prize recipients represented literature, history, mathematics, medicine, education, and art.[6] They were poet Yaakov Cohen, author Haim Hazaz, historians Gedalya Alon and Mark Dvorjetzki, mathematicians Yaakov Levitzky and Shimshon Amitzur, physician Lipman Halperin, educator Dina Feitelson-Shore, and artist Ze’ev Ben Zvi.[6] Each received 1,000 Israeli lira; a later published account gives prize money of 75,000 shekels.[6]

The education minister appoints specialist committees to recommend recipients who demonstrate outstanding ability or achieve breakthroughs in their fields.[6] Eligible recipients include Israeli citizens and organizations.[22] Prize fields encompass Jewish studies, humanities, social sciences, life sciences, medicine, exact sciences, culture, fine arts, and lifetime achievement.[6][22] In 1972, the government decided to add a special prize for contributions to the advancement and development of society and the state, including public, political, social, settlement, and economic activity.[23] The ceremony is associated with Independence Day celebrations in Jerusalem, and one published account records approximately 700 prizes since 1953, including approximately twenty-five organizational recipients.[6]

The Presidential Medal of Honor recognizes individuals or organizations for a unique contribution to Israel or tikkun olam, enhancement of Israel’s international standing, or qualities of initiative, innovation, creativity, and vision.[2] It is not restricted to Israelis or Jews; recipients include Zubin Mehta, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Angela Merkel, and Joe Biden.[11] The original recommending committee was led by retired Supreme Court President Meir Shamgar.[11] President Reuven Rivlin disbanded the committee and did not award the medal during his term; President Isaac Herzog restored the tradition and appointed a committee under retired Supreme Court Justice Yoram Danziger.[11]

On January 8, 2025, Herzog awarded the medal to Sir Frank Lowy and six other global leaders for longstanding contributions to Israel and the Jewish people.[3] The designation “Presidential Medal of Distinction” also appears in connection with civilian recognition: Peres announced Kahalani as a key recipient in September 2013 for contributions to Israeli society and civilization and enhancement of Israel’s global image.[20]

The Presidential Award for Civilian Heroism recognizes citizens who face tangible danger to their own lives to save human life, acting from shared fate and mutual responsibility.[12] Security forces, police, and military personnel are generally excluded, and the award may be conferred posthumously.[12] Anyone may nominate another person, but self-nomination is prohibited; submissions must include a detailed account and supporting evidence.[12] An investigative team verifies the account before an advisory board considers personal risk, courage, and physical and emotional effort, and recommends candidates to the president.[12] More than one candidate may share the award for the same event.[12]

The Presidential Award for Volunteerism, formerly the Presidential Award for Volunteers, annually recognizes twelve outstanding volunteers, whether individuals or organizations.[2] Its purpose is to encourage volunteerism and social involvement.[2] Israeli residents and organizations active in Israel may nominate themselves or others, and an advisory committee representing different parts of the volunteer sector recommends recipients.[2]

Recognition as Righteous Among the Nations rests on examination of testimony and documents concerning non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust.[7] The evaluating committee considers the rescuer’s motives, degree of danger, and nature of the action, placing particular importance on testimony from rescued people.[7]

The recognition system described in 1971 had three forms: a medal with the right to have a tree planted in the Garden of the Righteous, a certificate with the same planting right, or an honor certificate.[7] When recipients could not travel to Israel, ceremonies could be held at Israeli diplomatic missions.[7] By June 1971, 850 people had received the title.[7] One recipient, Wladyslaw Kowalski, sheltered Jews in Warsaw and spent four months with forty-nine Jews in a bunker beneath his house; he received the title on October 30, 1967.[7]

The medal bears a Hebrew motto rendered as “He who saves one life saves the entire world,” a paraphrase of a Talmudic saying.[24] By 2020, more than 27,000 people had received the medal, including over 7,000 Poles.[24] The honor links recognition of personal courage to remembrance of Jewish lives saved during the Holocaust.[7]

The Liberation Medal, issued in 1958, juxtaposed the Roman “Judaea Capta” coin on its obverse with the words “Israel Liberata” on its reverse.[4] The 1959 Valor commemorative medal displayed the IDF emblem and the Trumpeldor Memorial.[4] Other early subjects included Tel Aviv’s founding jubilee in 1959 and the Bar Kokhba medal of 1960, struck following discovery of the Bar Kokhba letters in the Dead Sea Caves.[4]

By 1970, more than one hundred subjects had been commemorated.[4] They included the Warsaw Ghetto Rising in 1963, Masada in 1964, the Rothschild family and Sinai Campaign in 1966, the Balfour Declaration in 1967, and El Al Airlines in 1969.[4] These issues brought ancient Jewish history, Holocaust remembrance, statehood, and contemporary Israeli development into the same commemorative medium.[4] In keeping with the Jewish tradition followed by the issuing program, living personalities were not commemorated.[4]

Official state medals carry the state emblem, “State of Israel” in Hebrew and English, and serial numbers on their edges.[4] Illustrated prospectuses accompanying the issues provide their historical stories and technical details.[4] Related commemorative coin programs included annual Independence Day issues, a Hanukkah series from 1958 to 1963, and special gold coins for the Herzl centenary, the Six-Day War, and Jerusalem’s 1968 reunification commemorations, as well as coins for charitable and religious uses.[4]

Archival material also records the Unit of Medals and Coins, entrusted with publishing official state memorial coins.[25] Examples include a special coin for Kibbutz Degania’s jubilee in 1960 and a Herzl coin featured on an Independence Day poster that year.[25] Such objects preserve commemorations of settlement, Zionist leadership, and state anniversaries alongside the military and civilian awards that recognize service and achievement.[1][25]

State recognition of Etzel and Lehi members became part of a significant dispute over the public memory of the pre-state struggle.[26] During Levi Eshkol’s tenure, veterans and relatives received the Decoration of State Warriors on behalf of Lehi members Eliyahu Bet-Zuri and Eliyahu Hakim.[26] David Ben-Gurion opposed recognizing the pair as legitimate Zionist heroes and condemned their killing of Lord Moyne as unjustified.[26] Their state-sponsored reburial in 1975 reflected a shift in official treatment, although the government’s public stance retained ambiguity.[26] The dispute concerned whose actions should receive state recognition and how that recognition shaped collective memory.[26]