Majdal Shams attack in Golan Heights reveals urgent need for enhanced school safety - opinion

Last Saturday, a rocket that landed on a soccer field in Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights resulted in the murder of 12 innocent young kids, along with 30 additional people injured. This shocking attack raises serious questions about our ability to ensure the safety of our children in schools, especially given that the new school year is set to begin on September 1. If we do not take immediate action before the start of the school year, the next disaster will be lurking just around the corner.

A school without proper protection can quickly become a death trap, and we must not allow any school to open without meeting the stringent standards of the IDF Home Front Command.

The threats to Israel’s home front led in 1972 to the amendment of the Civil Defense Law, which requires the construction of a shelter in every new private or public building. In a tour conducted by the State Comptroller and ombudsman since the beginning of the war, gaps in shelter availability were evident in communities along the confrontation lines in the South and North, especially in low socioeconomic and in older neighborhoods.

These findings are particularly frustrating, since the state comptroller warned about these severe gaps in homefront protection against the threat of missiles and rockets as early as 2020, presenting a frightening statistic indicating that about 28% of the country’s residents do not have standard protection near their homes.

Children first

Israel is divided into defense areas with varying response times. In most areas, a response time of one and a half minutes is defined, but in some areas, this time is reduced to just 15 seconds. This requires everyone to be in a constant state of readiness. Under these circumstances, we must ensure that our children are safe and protected in educational institutions.

With the fear of escalation in the northern sector, we must ensure that no student starts the school year this September in a school that does not meet the required protection standards, including safe rooms and shelters throughout the premises. We must ensure that the educational staff and students know the routes to the safe space and that those with roles in educational institutions know the required emergency procedures. Principals are required to ensure that escape routes are clear and operational and that all essential systems are functional and ready for use.

It is our duty to ensure that all educational institutions in Israel are optimally prepared and protected. Our children are our future, and we must ensure that we are sending them to a safe place.

The writer is mayor of Ganei Tikva, deputy chair of the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel, and chair of its Education Committee.