MK Israel Hasson (Kadima) announced the Ministerial Legislative Committee will submit a bill requiring the state to automatically recognize all former POWs as having a 20% disability.

Moses Tzin, head of the Defense Ministry’s Rehabilitation Division criticized the proposed bill.

“You cannot say all former POWs are handicapped at the 20 percent level automatically,” Tzin said.

“Each case must be examined individually, and in any case, “We do not limit the extent of care for any POW, regardless of his disability percentage,” Tzin said.

Hasson’s decision to submit the bill came after representatives from the Ministry of Defense and MK Hasson failed to reach consensus after eighteen months of deliberation.

“Right before Gilad Schalit returned, the Defense Ministry director-general told me he would automatically recognize Gilad and any other soldier who was captive for over two weeks as a victim of post-traumatic stress,” Hasson said.

“Captivity causes trauma, and the soldier should be in a unique framework that is different from any other military injury,” he explained. “It is essential to the rehabilitation process.”

“Our demand is based on medical research, which proves that captivity can cause a wide range of illnesses.”