Major-General Yitzhak Gershon, head of the Home Front Command, appeared before the political-security cabinet Wednesday and updated its members on the fortification of schools in Sderot and the Gaza vicinity communities.
Sderot has 164 fortified classrooms, when the need was for a 133; and the Gaza vicinity communities needed 176 such classrooms and got 200, Gershon told the cabinet.
"We have plenty of fortified classrooms so I see no reason not to open the school year on time," he said.
According to Gershon, 135 of the 173 kindergartens in the troubled areas have been fortified and the fortification of 10 others is to be completed in early September. By the end of the year, he said, 16 additional kindergartens will be fully fortified.
Furthermore, Home Front Command soldiers have been assigned to Sderot and Gaza vicinity communities' schools for the first few days of the new school year, where they will offer any assistance necessary.
Deputy Defense Minister MK Matan Vilnai (Labor-Meimad) told the political-security cabinet that the additional process of fortifying students' bus stations in Sderot and the Gaza vicinity communities is scheduled to begin within days.
Sderot parents not convinced
Sderot Municipality's education department told Ynet on Wednesday it was not familiar with the data introduced by Major General Gershon. Miriam Sassi, head of the education department, said that she did not understand how Gershon reached such a number of fortified classrooms.
"If one attaches the bomb shelters in one school and in the one next to it and turn them into classrooms, such a number may be possible. But that means the students will not study in the laboratories, computer rooms, etc," Sassi said.
"If this is the way the students will study, we will be paying a high educational price. We have dozens of computers and books still in boxes. We cannot unpack them because it is unclear where the students will study."
Sasson Sara, head of the Sderot parents' association, stressed that in any event the school year will not open in the city. A discussion on the length of the strike will be held Wednesday evening.
"If the situation is so good and there are so many fortified classrooms, why don’t the major-general or defense minister sign a guarantee for the classrooms. This is nonsense. I would like to know if the major-general would send his children to study in a bomb shelter for eight hours. Does he understand what this means?"
Shmulik Hadad contributed to the report
First published: 13:50, 08.29.7