(IsraelNN.com) The Home Front Command (HFC) has launched an information campaign designed to heighten civilian readiness for the possibility of an attack on Israel using non-conventional weapons.

Every single household in Israel can expect to receive a pamphlet from the HFC in the mail in the coming days. The pamphlet contains instructions on how to behave in emergency situations and is named "Being Protected and Ready." Citizens are instructed on how to find the safest area of their apartment, if there is no pre-designated safety zone or bomb shelter.

The pamphlet that will be mailed to citizens' homes is in Hebrew only. English-speakers can ask for an English language version to be mailed to their homes by dialing 1207 from any phone to the Home Front Command's information center.

Sit Next to a Wall
The campaign, which will shortly begin airing on TV and radio, tells citizens: "When you hear the siren, you should enter the room, sit next to an inner wall, and not opposite a window. Remember, following the instructions saves lives."

Instructions on how to seal a window, from the Hebrew language booklet.
Home Front Command

According to IDF Radio, the HFC's main conclusion from analyzing the events of the Second Lebanon War was that the population needs to be instructed and prepared for this kind of event. In addition, the information will be available for viewing at the HRC website.

The defense sources said Sunday that the campaign does not mean that there is a heightened alert, and that there is no alert regarding an imminent war. They said that the public needs to prepare for crisis situations during periods of calm, and not be suddenly thrust into preparations in an emergency, as happened in the Second Lebanon War, in 2006.

"It has been proven that people who were inside a structure... were hurt less... than people who were outside"
Home Front Command

No Need to Panic
Brig.-Gen. Ze'ev Tzuk-Ram, head of the Emergency Authority, told IDF Radio that the campaign was planned for a long time. "There is no need to be frightened or panic," he said. "Some of the campaign is about storing the products and equipment needed for times of emergency," he explained. "Just as one holds medicines in the medicine cabinet, in Israel one needs to hold these things," he said, referring to plastic sheeting and masking tape, which are used to seal apartments in times of a possible chemical or biological attack.

Nachman Shai, who is remembered by Israelis for calmly telling the populace to "drink water" in the first Gulf War, when he was IDF Spokesman, voiced criticism of the Home Front's move. He said the timing was premature and that the public needed time to recover from the trauma of the Second Lebanon War. He also said it was not clear what the citizens are expected to do regarding their gas masks. Some of the homes no longer have the masks, and others might expect to receive them now, he said.