Overwhelming majority of Israelis back US attack on Syria
Shavua tov, a good week to everyone.
A poll of Jewish Hebrew-speaking Israelis finds that
67% support an American attack on Syria.
While in the United States and
Great Britain, some 90 percent of the publics are opposed to such an
attack -- in Israel, more than 66% of the Jewish Hebrew-speaking
population supports an attack (only 17% opposes). With that, the exact
same percentage of the population is concerned that if such an attack
occurs, Israel will be drawn into a war.
This duality, which characterizes the Israeli
mood and public discourse in recent weeks, receives statistical
affirmation in an Israel Hayom survey conducted by New Wave Research.
Israelis believe that ultimately an attack
against Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime will take place -- close
to 73% of Israelis believe so. More than 57% believe if the U.S. attacks
Syria, the Israel Defense Forces will act against specific targets or
threats. Only 13% think that the situation will deteriorate into all-out
war in the Middle East. Over 28.7% said they are not concerned that a
U.S. attack will drag Israel into a war.
And a lot more Israelis are finding gas masks.
Another statistic of note coming from the survey is that
over 71% of those questioned have equipped themselves with a gas mask.
Of those who still have not, some 25% said they intended to do so in the
coming days (some 7% of all those polled). 37% said they do not intend
to get gas masks (some 10% of all those polled), and the same percentage
said they have not yet decided.
Hmmm.
Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Bashar al-Assad, Binyamin Netanyahu, chemical weapons, gas masks, Syria, Syrian uprising
Prominent rabbis: No need for gas masks
Two prominent Haredi rabbis told their followers on Thursday that there is no need for gas masks. Rav Chaim Kanievsky urged followers to fear only the day of judgment on Rosh HaShanna (which is next week), and Rav Aaron Yehuda Leib Steinman urged followers to
strengthen themselves in Torah study (link in Hebrew). I have translated part of the article below.
In the last 24 hours, Rav Steinman was asked how to act, and whether this time was different from previous times when Israelis tried to obtain gas masks (at which times Rav Steinman also said they were unnecessary). Rav Steinman calmed those who asked, and said that in this period, we must strengthen ourselves with Torah study and fear of Heaven, and to seek merits for the oncoming day of judgment (Rosh HaShanna).
The Torah protects the people of Israel, Rav Steinman said. There is no need for masks.
A group of married students at the Mirrer Yeshiva in Jerusalem sent a question to Rav Chaim Kanievsky asking how they must prepare for the expected war, and whether they should go to the distribution points to obtain masks.
In response to their question, Rav Kanievsky laughed and said that masks are for Purim (the holiday on which people get dressed up in costume). Rav Kanievsky urged his questioners to continue to be absorbed in their Torah study without any suspicion or fear regarding what may follow.
Last night, additional people came to Rav Kanievsky's Bnei Brak home to ask if there is anything to fear. He said that we must only fear Rosh HaShanna and to worry about our merits in God's judgment.
Labels: gas masks, Rabbi Aaron Leib Steinman, Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky
Need a gas mask? Go on EBay
Are you in Israel without a gas mask? Don't worry - you can find one quite easily. It seems that there are some Israelis who are so convinced that they won't need them that they are
selling their government-issued gas masks on EBay (link in Hebrew).
The gas masks, which are being sold anonymously, start at $29.99 and are being sold as high as $175. One enterprising Israeli is selling the instructions and the box (which is supposed to remain sealed until the government gives orders to open it) for $5.24.
But you'd be foolish to buy from these people. If you cannot get one for free from the IDF or the postal service, you can buy them new from the manufacturer for NIS 222 (about $62.50). Many of the gas masks being sold on EBay are old, which means they probably date back to 2003, which is the last time we were told to open them.
Labels: gas masks
Israel's security cabinet approves limited reservist call-up
The Israeli government keeps telling us that we should go about our daily business, and that they don't expect Bashar al-Assad to attack us, but they're preparing all the same. The security cabinet has approved a limited call-up of reservists, which is usually a sign that
they expect something to happen.
Security sources would not specify how many reservists were to be called
up, or to which units, though some reservists attached to the
Home-Front command were expected to be among those called up.
In addition, the sources said that the government approved the deployment of advanced anti-missile batteries in the north.
The security cabinet was briefed by Chief of General Staff Benny Gantz, as well as other senior defense officials.
The information presented at the meeting indicated a "low
probability" that Syrian President Bashar Assad would respond to US
military action by striking Israel. Nevertheless, the sources said,
Israel was preparing for any eventuality, which explained the limited
reserve call-ups.
Following the security cabinet meeting, the
second urgent security consultation in as many days, Netanyahu issued a
statement Wednesday saying Israelis need not alter their daily routine.
"The
IDF is ready to defend against any threat and prepared to respond
severely against any attempt to harm Israeli citizens," he said.
I can tell you that I was in town today, and saw someone with a stroller with about half a dozen gas masks piled on it. Someone else stopped them and asked them where they got it. The answer was a major street in a completely different part of town. Yes, there is a run on gas masks. Glad we got ours a long time ago.
Labels: Bashar al-Assad, chemical weapons, gas masks, Syrian army
Gas mask distribution in Jerusalem
I can only hope that this means that we have solved the shortage (somehow I doubt it), but Paula Stern reports that
she got gas masks in Jerusalem.
This is significant because there really has been no distribution in and around Jerusalem until now (although we had our gas masks collected a number of years ago). The only reason we have gas masks already is that Mrs. Carl works in the center of the country and got them there.
This comment from Paula is a great summary of what's so bizarre about this situation:
This was more than I had hoped for, "okay," I responded as he turned to retrieve the biggest box of all. I don't know whether it is the tent version for an infant or the one for a toddler. "What's the baby's name?" the man asked.
Elie told it to him and the man wrote my grandson's name on a gas mask. I called Amira as soon as I was clear of the area and told her. She was happy. Can you understand the concept that a young mother was happy that her son now had a gas mask? When you can, you'll understand what it is to be Israeli - at least in part.
Indeed.
Labels: gas masks, Iranian nuclear threat, weapons of mass destruction
47% of Israelis don't have gas masks
I've been warning about this for years, and now Haaretz is picking up on it too. If God forbid there is a war here, Israelis are woefully under-equipped.
47% of the population doesn't even have gas masks.
But besides threatening to attack, one must also ask what defensive measures Israel is taking to prepare for the possibility that chemical weapons will indeed fall into dangerous hands. The answer is rather worrisome.
Four years ago, after lengthy delays, the Israeli government decided to renew the distribution of gas masks to the public. After another two years of bureaucratic wrangling, a decision was made to fully fund the project, so that every a mask for every citizen would be assured.
But that decision was never implemented. “To this day we haven’t seen a single additional shekel more than what was decided from the start,” an IDF source said.
To date, the Home Front Command has distributed gas masks to 53% of the public.
A new campaign that Israel Post has launched recently on the Internet makes the especially dramatic claim that, “Some 4.2 million citizens have equipped themselves with protective kits. Only a very limited inventory remains.” The postal service is the state’s subcontractor for the gas mask distribution project, having won the Defense Ministry tender. Its messages are fully coordinated with the Home Front Command and have its approval.
So what about the other 47 percent? The problem, the IDF says, is not the readiness of the public to obtain the kits, but two other obstacles: budget and the annual production capacity.
Theoretically, to equip every resident with a gas mask would require another NIS 1.3 billion. But the pace of production is also a problem. Today there are two firms that manufacture gas masks – Shalon, which manufactures them, and Super-Gum, which refurbishes old ones. Even if the money was available and both these production lines were working at top capacity, it would still take two years to make all the needed kits. There’s simply no way to accelerate the pace further. And unlike in the past, Israel can no longer rely on being able to buy gas masks abroad. The production of such protective kits for the civilian market essentially stopped at the end of the Cold War.
What could go wrong?
Labels: chemical weapons, gas masks, Syria
Hope you got your gas masks
About six weeks ago, I warned that the supply of gas masks would
run out by April. Unfortunately,
the supply all but ran out on Thursday. Incredibly, I have not seen this widely reported.
For procrastinators in Israel who want to be prepared in the event of a war: Thursday is the last chance for Israelis to acquire a free gas mask and chemical attack defense kit. The vast majority of distribution stations, which have been open for the past two years, located in cities throughout the country, will stop operating at the close of business on March 1. Only six stations will remain open.
Officials report large crowds at stations over the past few days, as Israelis seek the government-supplied protective gear in the wake of increased tensions with Iran. Several stations have already shut down because they have run out of the gas mask kits, Home Front Security officials said.
Some 4 million kits have been distributed in the past two years, but officials estimate that only about 120,000 remain in stock. Budgetary issues prevented the Homefront Command from acquiring more kits, and ad campaigns during the period stressed that there was a limited supply of kits. It is estimated that at least a third of Israelis do not have kits right now, and unless more money is allocated to the program, they will have to purchase the kits themselves. At least NIS 1 billion (about $350 million) is needed to acquire more kits, but even if the money is found quickly, it would take at least several months to manufacture the masks according to IDF specifications.
The fact that the government is about to run out of gas masks is surreal, and I would suggest that those of you in Israel who don't have them already try to get them from one of the six remaining locations or buy them even if they aren't IDF specification. It's too important.
Second, while Iran might have chemical and biological weapons, the real threat in that area is not Iran but Syria. And given Syria's current domestic situation, the threat isn't so much from Syria itself as from chemical and biological weapons that Syria provided to Hezbullah (or Hamas but I don't think Hamas has any) and from chemical and biological weapons that might be let loose if and when the Assad government falls.
I will be on the BBC Radio Sunday morning at 10:15 Israel time (8:15 in the UK) to talk about this issue and other matters relating to the potential Iranian threat. I will remind you again on Sunday.
Labels: gas masks, weapons of mass destruction
Are you exposed?
More than a year ago, I warned those of you who live in Israel to
make sure you have gas masks. Did you listen? At the time, I warned that 40% of Israelis won't have gas masks by the end of 2012. Well, it's worse than that. Between 45-50% of Israelis won't have gas masks when the music stops. And the music is scheduled to stop
sometime in April.
IDF data shows that it has only 400,000 kits left, which are expected to be distributed within the next three months on a "first come, first serve" basis. While the government has commissioned the production of 120,000 additional gas mask kits, the measure was meant to make sure that the factories remain functional; these kits are not to be distributed.
Once the last kits are distributed, 55% of Israeli citizens – 4.2 million people – will be in possession of a gas mask. The other 45%, as well as tens of thousands of refugees and migrant workers, will remain unprotected should an unconventional attack target Israel.
Producing enough kits to cover the rest of the population would cost NIS 1.2 billion (roughly $318 million).
"The distribution will stop because we don't have the budget," a senior Home Front Command official said. "But even if the funds turn up, it would take two years to manufacture the rest of the kits."
The data shows that in the area that is most vulnerable to an attack, stretching from Haifa to Ashdod, 38% of the citizens don't have gas masks. In cities that are less exposed, like Jerusalem and Eilat, distribution centers never opened. As result, only 15% of residents in the capital have a gas mask. Some 52% of Tel Aviv residents are in possession of the protective equipment.
Who says
Jerusalem is less exposed?
If you don't have a gas mask and you live in Israel, please go tomorrow morning and get one. In light of the threats that we face, the failure to provide nearly half the population with gas masks is gross negligence of epic proportions (and something I have been
warning about for years).
What could go wrong?
Labels: gas masks, IDF Home Front Command, weapons of mass destruction
