'Millions' of Israelis unprotected from missiles, comptroller reveals

‘Millions’ of Israelis do not have sufficient protection from Iranian missiles, State Comptroller Matanyahu Engelman said following visits on Monday to sites in Ramat Gan and Bat Yam hit by missiles.

According to Engelman, “In 2020, we published an extremely severe report about the protection gaps in the State of Israel. At that time, it was found that close to 2.6 million residents were living without adequate protection. Moreover, budgets allocated to the issue were not utilized, and government plans were left unfunded.

“According to another report we recently completed, regarding sheltering and protection in local authorities (a draft of which has already been submitted to the Prime Minister, Home Front Command, and the Minister of National Security), the gaps remain extremely significant. This includes millions of Israeli citizens still without protection, malfunctioning public shelters, a lack of mapping for the population without access to protected spaces, and insufficient preparedness to support civilians once they are harmed,” Engelman said.

“I call upon the Prime Minister, the Minister of National Security, the Minister of Defense, the Home Front Command, and all relevant parties: we are in the midst of a war against Iran. It is crucial to ensure the home front is addressed. A strong home front is essential for the State of Israel,” he concluded.

The deadly missile that hit the Arab city Tamra in the Lower Galilee on Saturday led to additional comments by public officials regarding the state of protection in Arab localities. The strike on Tamra killed Manar al-Qasem Abu al-Heija Khatib, and her two daughters, Hala and Shada, ages 13 and 20, as well as their relative, Manar Diab Katib, and injured approximately 20 others at various degrees of injury.

Millions of Israelis need better shelters, fortified buildings

“Millions of citizens in Israel live in homes that are not fortified and without access to public shelters—particularly in south Tel Aviv, the Negev, and in Arab towns and villages—placing them in real and immediate danger in the face of the growing threat of rocket fire,” Cassif wrote.

The MK mentioned that the committee had already held a similar meeting in September. According to Cassif, following that meeting, the committee called to establish an inter-ministerial team to explore how to progress on the issue, and requested from the Ministry of Defense a detailed account of the gaps in protection across various cities. “However, no real progress has been recorded to date,” Cassif wrote.

"The state must take action to implement a fortification plan in older neighborhoods at the centers of cities, both in the central region and the periphery. Even when there is no economic profitability, the state must reach into its pockets, fund, and support these projects,” Cassif wrote.

The Knesset Internal Affairs and Environment Committee held a meeting in November on the subject of a lack of proper protection in the Arab towns in the North. Three organizations – Injaz Center for Professional Arab Local Governance, The National Committee for Heads of Arab Local Authorities, and Sikkuy-Aufoq For a Shared and Equal Society – wrote the following in a policy paper filed to the committee ahead of the meeting:

"The issue of fortification is especially urgent in the northern communities, where residents are living unprotected in the face of mounting war threats. In many Arab communities in the north, there are no secure rooms or public shelters at all. Out of 39 settlements surveyed, 23 are Arab communities lacking proper shelter. A recent report by the Knesset’s Knesset Internal Affairs and Environment Committee found that 59% of casualties in the north since the war broke out were Arab citizens.”

The policy paper’s authors added information regarding a lack of public shelters in Arab towns. In Tamra, Saknin, Jadeidi-Maker, Majd al-Krum, Deir al-Asad, Rameh, Nahf, which number approximately 150,000 citizens altogether, there were no public shelters whatsoever. In comparison, Nahariya, Acre, Safed, and Karmiel, which numbered approximately 200,000 civilians altogether, had approximately 600 public shelters.