Israelis near borders still don’t have access to shelters - report
Public shelters found to be inadequate for 2.6 million citizens, evacuation plans are incomplete, says State Comptroller’s Report.
By ANNA AHRONHEIMRESIDENTS OF the South take cover last week after hearing sirens warning of incoming rockets from Gaza. (photo credit: RONEN ZVULUN / REUTERS)
Four years after the state comptroller first reported on the readiness of the home front for missiles and rocket attacks, millions of Israeli citizens still do not have the means for basic protection near their homes, and plans for population evacuations have yet to be completed, a new Comptroller’s Report has found.The report, which examined corrections to the deficiencies in the 2016 report, found that several issues still remain, with “particularly critical flaws found in towns along the northern border.”According to the report, some 21,000 mortars and rockets have been fired toward Israel from September 2000 until September 2019, and tens of thousands of missiles and rockets are expected to be launched in any coming war.But despite the dire assessment, the report found that 2.6 million residents of Israel (28%) still do not have basic protection from rocket attacks near their homes, and 2,494 of 12,601 public bomb shelters (20%) have been found to be inadequate.Some public and shared private shelters in communities along the border are expected to be overcrowded during times of emergencies, which “may not allow for prolonged stays in them,” the report said. Home Front Command had not said that was the case in its reports.The report revealed shortcomings regarding the protection of vital infrastructure and facilities by the defense establishment. A work plan for their protection must be prepared, and sources for its financing should be found, the report said.Another issue that was reported in 2016 and not yet carried out was that authorities of the bodies handling the home front are not yet organized, and implementation of the decision by the security cabinet to formulate a multiyear program for handling the home front has yet to be carried out, the report said.In July 2018, the security cabinet said a multiyear plan, known as Northern Shield, would be formulated for the years 2019-2030 to protect the home front and improve the country’s earthquake preparedness.At the time, former defense minister Avigdor Liberman said since the last war in the North in 2006, the government had invested about NIS 1.7 billion ($485 million) in protective facilities for some 46,000 Israelis in the South near the Gaza Strip, spending an estimated NIS 37,000 ($10,600) per resident.Meanwhile, in the North, which is home to some 244,000 Israelis, over the same period of time the government spent NIS 236m. ($68m.), or approximately NIS 970 ($280) per resident, he said.Liberman planned to have buildings in northern communities up to 45 km. from the Lebanese border fortified. But a year later the plan was canceled.In addition, it was found that while there had been an improvement in detection and warning abilities and preparedness of government ministries for population evacuations, such plans for communities near the border, including Kiryat Shmona and Sderot, had yet to be completed, and some were impossible to implement, the report said.Plans to evacuate residents are “based on incorrect basic principles and will be difficult to implement,” the report said, adding that an alternative plan that is currently being formulated does not deal with the evacuation of communities along the northern border.The report recommended that the Finance Ministry, Defense Ministry, Internal Security Ministry and Home Front Command complete the formulation of a plan to protect the home front “at a total cost of NIS 5 billion in accordance with the July 2018 decision of the security cabinet.”The report also recommended that the Interior Ministry and Home Front Command urge local authorities to fulfill their role in everything concerning the enforcement of the law of bomb shelters to ensure their usability to protect residents during times of emergency.“Home Front Command should consider the ability to stay in shelters as a component of their competence and map all the public and private shelters shared by those that do not allow prolonged stays, especially in the threatened areas,” the report said, adding that the IDF and National Emergency Authority must “complete the formulation of the plan for the evacuation and absorption of residents of communities,” including those next to the Gaza Strip and along the northern border.According to the IDF, the first phase of the Northern Shield program is currently underway, and surveys have been conducted in 21 communities located along the border. But the “significant gap” in the report is due to the government not locating necessary budgetary sources.Regarding the proper maintenance of shared private shelters and public shelters, the military said it is the responsibility of homeowners and municipalities to ensure they can be used during times of emergency.“The IDF constantly works to carry out its missions that have direct security implications quickly,” the IDF said. “The IDF works in full cooperation with the auditors, with openness and transparency, and takes its findings seriously. The IDF has acted and continues to act to meet all its objectives and to regulate the issues recommended in the audit report.”In response to the report, the Defense Ministry said Israel has “made a significant leap” in recent years in terms of protecting vital facilities that have been “defined as essential to the continued functioning of the economy during times of emergency.”“The implementation of an additional protection program of essential infrastructure has just begun,” it added.Since the formation of the government, the Defense Ministry said it is currently making the “necessary adjustments to the draft bill for its promotion” regarding the 2016 proposal for civilian bomb shelters and the protection of critical infrastructure.
