war with Hezbollah by end of next March.

Israel will respond to Iran's & Hezbollah's missiles with catastrophic weapons Elias Youssef Bejjani
07 Jan 2010
This analysis was eritten by Hamid Ghoriafi, Middle East Analyst & Journalist,
Published on 07/01/10 by the Kuwaiti Daily Al-Seyassah,
Translated from Arabic by Elias Bejjani, LCCC Chairman
*Israel is providing her 4.5 million citizens with anti-weapons of mass destruction masks.
*Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak is expecting a war with Hezbollah and Iran by the end of next March.
*The Israeli army fears that Hezbollah might launch missiles with biological and chemical warheads.
*Israel confirmed that its response would include southern Lebanon, the suburbs of Beirut, the Bekaa valley and the heart of the Gaza strip
Next Wednesday and Thursday, Israel will carry the most extensive training exercise in its history. The aim is to prepare the country for the potential threat of biological and chemical warfare missiles which her military and political experts fear Iran or Hezbollah might launch on the Jewish state, or through a series of local terrorist attacks by weapons of mass destruction targeting Tel Aviv or other major Israeli cities.

The "Orange Flame" is the name that was given to the campaign according to an Israeli media agency. The training is expected to cover Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan and Holon. It will focus on procedures and tactics required to rescue those injured by biological and chemical weapons. This exercise is going to be carried despite the fact that the state's "Interior Front Command," is working on the distribution of anti-biological and -chemical masks for the entire Israeli population of 4.5 million.

Hundreds of medical and rescue teams, municipal authorities, hospitals, special army and internal security services units, will all jointly participate in this biggest and most extensive exercise that aims to address potential biological disasters that could hit the country.

The training will involve vital ministries e.g., health, interior, defense, and public affairs. All staff in these institutions will be trained on how to face a catastrophic biological warfare in which thousands of citizens could be exposed to deadly gases. Meanwhile, hospitals in Tel Aviv and other regions like Ichilov, Tel Hashomer and Beersheba, in addition to health organizations and portable clinics will all be ready to receive more than a thousand volunteers who supposedly will be hit with biological gases.

According to the Israeli Haaretz newspaper there will be three major centers in Tel Aviv to accommodate the injured: the House of Danny, the Ramat Gan sports stadium and the Holon club. The training will also include thousands of citizens, civil servants, army and civil defense elements, in addition to doctors and nurses who were trained during the past few months in dealing with internal (terrorist acts) or external (missiles from outside the border) biological and chemical attacks.

Gen. Zeev Snir, who is assigned to represent the Israeli Defense Ministry in supervising the exercises, told the media that: "Our first challenge will focus on containing the damages caused by terrorist acts and biological or chemical attacks, and then identify the type of biological or chemical agent used in a bid that life returns to normal as quickly as possible".