Over 2 million Israelis will be left defenseless in case of a missile attack, a new report by State Comptroller Yosef Shapira warned Monday.
The report surveyed the war readiness of local authorities in Israel and found that 26% of Israelis – over 2 million people – have no access to private or public bomb shelters.
Homefront Command data included in the report showed that 39% of Israelis have access to private bomb shelters in the form of a fortified room in their home. Another 35% have access to a public bomb shelter in their building or their neighborhood.
The comptroller's audit, performed between August and November 2017, reviewed the availability and maintenance of bomb shelters in various Jewish and non-Jewish municipalities.
The review was carried out via visits by State Comptroller's Office inspectors, who also met with local security officers and city officials responsible for emergency readiness, and gathered the relevant documents.
Supplementary reviews were carried out by the Homefront Command, the Interior Ministry's Emergency Services Administration, and the security departments at the Education and Finance ministries.
The review concluded that as of late 2017, at least 20 non-Jewish local and regional councils – 24% of municipalities in the sector – fell short of properly mapping public shelters in their jurisdiction.
The report further found that 38% of students in the non-Jewish sector lacked proper shelters in their schools, some of which were devoid of bomb shelters altogether.
Many Israeli municipalities also fail to properly maintain public shelters, the report said.
