Is this a drill?

May 27, 2009 - 1:54 PM by Nicky · 3 Comments
Filed under: A New Reality, General, Israeliness, Life, War

I don’t know whether to be relieved or worried by the government’s decision to hold a large-scale nationwide drill next Tuesday. Relieved, because the government is clearly preparing us all for missile attacks, which is very responsible and forward thinking; and worried, well because the government is clearly preparing us all for missile attacks.

Sound the alarm and make for a shelter

With the war of words between Israel and Iran heating up, it’s hard not to feel a little jumpy even when you’re an optimistic sort.

The government’s idea is to hold a nationwide civil defense exercise, called Turning Point 3 (I presume we’ve already had Turning Point 1 and 2). During the exercise sirens will go off across the country. And this time, instead of ignoring them, the entire population will have to head for the nearest shelter or protected site.

For my kids it’s a trip to a rather dank and smelly underground shelter at the school. For my husband it’s going to be interesting since the shelters in his high-rise office block are rented out for storage. For me, well with no one around to notice, it’s probably not worth making the effort to amble down the stairs to my son’s bedroom cum shelter. Even though it’s got wireless Internet.

In a meeting at the Knesset, Dep. Defense Minister Matan Vilnai said the exercise was based on the presumption of a missile assault from three or four directions, some with unconventional weapons, synchronized with large-scale terrorist attacks up and down the country.

This, he stressed, was no fantastic scenario made up by Hollywood scriptwriters, but a highly credible development in the event of war. I can’t help but wonder what drill they have planned for us in the event of a nuclear strike.

My village started preparing for the drill last week, when the sirens suddenly went off early in the morning. No one seemed particularly concerned, however, and just went about their business as normal. Finally someone raised their head and said: “Do you think that’s a drill?”

Anyway, good to know we’re prepared. Gas masks to be handed out later this year. Ah, the good life.

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