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Ludmila Rozhkov and Irena Akselrod, grandmother and mother of Veronica (center)­—daughter of Rozhkov’s son, German.

Ludmila Rozhkov and Irena Akselrod, grandmother and mother of Veronica (center)­—daughter of Rozhkov’s son, German.

Photographer: Michal Chelbin for Bloomberg Businessweek
Businessweek
Feature

Postmortem Sperm Retrieval Is Turning Dead Men Into Fathers

In Israel, parents of slain soldiers are pushing for their right to be future grandparents. Critics call it planned orphanhood.

The Memorial Day gathering in Kiryat Shmona, like countless others across Israel in early May, begins in the morning at the local military cemetery. Everyone stands in silence as a siren blasts for two minutes. Wreaths are laid, speeches are made, and tears are shed.

Later, about 20 people, young and old, sit around the table in the main room of a public housing apartment in this city near the Lebanese border. They help themselves to pasta, shawarma, cakes, and coffee, and they remember German Rozhkov.

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