State: Not all classrooms need to be fortified

As Qassam lands in central Sderot, State Prosecutor's Office says schools only require 'fortified areas', not comprehensive fortification

Shmulik Hadad|Published: 11.14.06 , 21:42

A Qassam rocket landed in central Sderot Tuesday evening and, miraculously, no one was hurt. A number of structures near the impact site were damaged.

This is the second rocket to land in Israel Tuesday. The first rocket landed on a kibbutz factory in the western Negev.

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Rocket attacks have continued for the past several days, both during and after IDF's Autumn Clouds operation in northern Gaza. Monday, a rocket landed in a Sderot residential neighborhood, damaging a number of structures.

Concurrent to the ongoing barrages, the state prosecutor's office responded to a petition submitted by the Sderot parents association, the headquarters for civil struggle and the Movement for Quality Government, complaining that the government is not fortifying educational institutions in the city.

'Adequate solution'

Advocate Raanan Giladi, who wrote the response, stated that "in the government's decision, it was decided that fortification of schools would be based on the principle of creating 'fortified areas' that would allow students to get to a fortified area upon hearing the warning sirens."

"This means that not all classrooms are meant to be classified as fortified structures," he clarified.

According to this classification, classrooms are considered fortified if they possess physical fortification and if they are in close proximity to a classroom that possesses fortification.

"This concept provides an adequate solution to the fortification of schools, in accordance with budget priorities and capabilities," Giladi added.

Regarding the budget problems, the advocate explained that "according to the government ruling, there is no budget available to fortify classrooms other than 'hub' classrooms, where most lessons take place."

"Shortly, an extensive survey to determine the additional security needs of the schools will be undertaken. Afterwards, the costs will be determined and will return to the upper echelons to be decided upon," he continued.

Additionally, the state prosecutor's office said that "according to reports from the IDF's building center, the hub classrooms in all 24 schools along the Gaza periphery will be completed by November 2006, in about two weeks."