Occupied Jerusalem: Israeli Minister of Defence Ehud Barak announced on Sunday that Israel started the biggest military and civil drills in its history, that would include unconventional weapons, in what military analysts believe is a prelude for something "big".
"The readiness of the interior front and preparing it for any possibility is a determining factor in winning any war. The current drills gain special importance since they are based on the outcomes of the war against Lebanon in 2006," Barak said at a Cabinet meeting.
The drills, which started the moment Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said, "the war has started", have been dubbed "turning point 2" by the government.
Military analysts, including military analyst for Israeli Channel 10 Alun Bin Ami, said the first turning point was in the 33-day war on Lebanon.
"There is no doubt that these drills come in preparation for something huge. No one knows what the nature of this thing is but the Israeli army has been training around the clock to significantly improve its attack and defence techniques for the near future," Bin Ami told Gulf News.
The Israeli government was keen to publish the programmes of the drills, for which preparations were made four months ago, with the aim of reassuring Israeli citizens.
Today, all emergency departments will carry out drills, including the National Emergencies Department, the Emergency Management Department and the interior front management along with Cabinet ministries, fire department, the Red David Star, and the Israeli police.
The mini Israeli Security Council for security and political affairs will hold a session to arrange a war simulation.
Between tomorrow and Thursday, a series of drills and manoeuvres will be held all over the country.
Elaborate schedule
On Tuesday morning, siren alarms will be sounded at 10am and pupils in all schools will be trained on entering shelters.
On Wednesday, emergency forces will be trained on different scenarios, which include a hazardous material situation in Haifa Gulf, a rescue operation in Al Nasirah (Nazareth), and a strike with a non-conventional missile. On Thursday, more drills will be performed based on the non-conventional missile scenario, with a hospital in Al Afolah north of Israel taking in the casualties.
"Israeli army leaders made it clear that they need to beat Hezbollah at the nearest possible chance, to lead the Israeli army to become the strongest in the Middle East," Tulb Al Sane'e, Israeli Knesset member, told Gulf News.
These drills intentionally exclude some Arab towns and villages, which is part of the government's racist policy, he added.
Al Nasirah Municipality's director Ramez Jaraisah told Gulf News the city is participating in the drills because during the war in 2006, the Arab central region was not ready and sustained huge losses.
