"The bottom line is that if there is no civil defense, nobody will have
the energy or will for a sustained Israeli offensive," an official said.
The military has launched a study of the feasibility of contributing
thousands of soldiers to civil defense in any future war. The study would
determine whether soldiers from non-combat units could be trained in civil
defense and assigned to help protect and maintain schools, hospitals and
social services during wartime.
"This project is utilizing to the fullest military personnel in an
emergency," a senior officer in the military's Operations Directorate said.
"We want to assist the home front in the treatment of civilians, and one
way to do so is through these soldiers who are not needed in their units
during emergencies and can help in other missions."
Officials said the study would determine which soldiers could perform
civilian duties during wartime. They said this could mean that secretaries
at military headquarters in Tel Aviv serve as teachers, replacing those
mobilized for combat.
Other tasks assigned to non-combat soldiers could include staffing
hospitals, nursing homes and senior citizen centers. Officials said soldiers
would also be trained in how to provide first aid to those wounded in a
chemical weapons attack.
Turning Point-4 included a scenario in which Israel was struck by
missiles tipped with chemical warheads. Organizers envisioned that scores of
people would die in such a nonconventional missile strike.
"The scale of the exercise on the Israel Defense Forces bases was
unprecedented in relation to previous years," the senior officer said.