After Vacation, a Dose of Reality

This article appears in today's Jerusalem Post. A similar article appears in Haaretz.

'Home Front Drill Scenario Not Fiction'

The upcoming home front drill, Turning Point 3, is based on a scenario in which "a combined missile and rocket attack on Israel from all sides combined with terror attacks from within," and is "not a fictional scenario,", Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilan'i told members of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Monday.

Vilna'i briefed the committee on the state-wide drill, scheduled to begin on May 31. The threat of missiles hitting mainland Israel "is not unrealistic," Vilna'i continued. "If a war breaks out, that is probably what would happen."

According to Vilna'i, "In conducting this national home front drill we aren't looking to scare anyone, but rather prepare ourselves for a threat which has its writing on the wall."

The drill will include all emergency response teams, all government ministries as well as the entire civilian population. According to the military, people will be asked to choose secured rooms or bomb shelters, and ensure that they know what to do in the event of war.

During the exercise, 252 local councils and municipalities will open 'crisis rooms' and will respond to various simulated emergency scenarios.

The exercise will be the third home front exercise to be held since the Second Lebanon War in 2006 and since the Defense Ministry's National Emergency Administration , which is responsible for setting national emergency standards, was established.

This is the link to original article: Home Front Drill Scenario Not Fiction

A related article, about a recent drill held by the Israeli Air Force can be found here: IAF Holds Massive Exercise Simulating All-Out War