IDF hosts int’l conference on emergency planning

Home Front Command hosts seminar to share working models on how to manage civilian populations during times of crisis

By YAAKOV LAPPIN
HOME FRONT troops take part in a missile defense drill 370 (photo credit: Courtesy)
HOME FRONT troops take part in a missile defense drill 370
(photo credit: Courtesy)
The IDF Home Front Command is hosting a five-day international seminar in Tel Aviv this week, to share working models on how to manage civilian populations during times of crisis.
Delegates from 19 countries and the United Nations are attending the conference, the ninth of its kind, which is being held at the Dan Panorama hotel in Tel Aviv.
“The aim is to share our information and experience in Israel on how to handle crises, whether caused by war or natural disaster,” said Col.
Itai Peleg, of the Home Front Command. “We also want to hear from participants on how they tackle the challenges.”
The seminar includes lectures from leading national security professionals and allowing the delegates to observe drills, Peleg said.
During the program, the Home Front Command will present its preparations for emergencies, plans to cope with the crises as they occur and ways of assisting civilians afterwards.
Then, delegates will be shown how the Home Front Command works with individuals, families, communities, cities, emergency services and the international arena.
“This way, we cover both the timeline and the geographic levels of operations,” Peleg said.
Peleg, who is in the reserves, said the past 20 years have seen significant developments in the way the Home Front Command gathers information, prepares theories and learns from experience.
“This isn’t an agency that is at rest. It is a dynamic learning organization, and it is going forward all the time,” he said. “We have to realize that our surroundings change.
Technology changes, and the threats change. We can’t stay in place.”
One of the uniquely Israeli programs on display at the conference is the effort by the Home Front Command to urge the general public to prepare ahead of time for crises, through pamphlets sent to homes and media campaigns.
“In terms of public diplomacy, we have many interesting things to share,” said Peleg.
“These are unique activities that can be learned by others, though each country has its own needs.”