Following a series of terror attacks throughout Israel and as part of the lessons learned from 2021's Operation Guardian of the Walls, the Netzach Yehuda association in cooperation with the Jerusalem Municipality, the Public Security Ministry, and Israel Police initiated the establishment of the Magen project, hoping to interest many more local municipalities.
As part of the project, community standby units will be established in Jerusalem, in order to create high availability in case of terrorist incidents and other emergency incidents in the community. The standby units will be staffed by volunteers led by veterans of the haredi Nacha"l and other haredi programs in the IDF, who will undergo designated training and courses under the guidance of the Israel Police force.
The objectives of the Magen project are: Establishment of standby units with an emphasis on haredi locations, protection of the city by skilled civilians whose activities will shorten the time of arrival for any terrorist incident, creating a sense of security and expanding security circles by integrating graduates of haredi combat training tracks in the IDF, as volunteers in the Civil Guard.
As part of the project, which is to begin in the next few days, a preliminary pilot will be launched, in which the volunteers will undergo a quick process including issuing a weapon-carrying certificate, unique training programs, a police certificate, and a kit with professional equipment supplied to police volunteers.
This week the project was launched in a festive event at Beit Ha'am in Jerusalem, with the participation of hundreds of volunteers, the heads of the Netzach Yehuda Association, Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion, the project leader in Jerusalem, Councilor Avishai Cohen, Deputy Mayor Elisha Peleg, the Jerusalem District Police Chief, and others.
Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion said: "The Magen project is a welcome and important project whose implementation will contribute to increasing the personal security of the city's residents in the public space."
"The actions they will take in the standby units, such as fast access to terrorist incidents and expanding security circles by integrating volunteers with the Civil Guard, will strengthen security in every neighborhood and street in Jerusalem. This project, added to the wide variety of actions led by the Jerusalem Municipality, such as the distribution of 3,000 cameras throughout the city watched by teams of observers, will bring us to this lofty goal."
Major (Res.) Yossi Levy, CEO of Netzach Yehuda and one of the initiators of the project, said, "In the days after the terrorist attacks in the haredi neighborhoods, it suddenly dawned on me. We, as a body that accompanies 16,000 army veterans that are haredi, we can equip the cities with hundreds of volunteers that can be recruited to establish a standby platoon that will provide a solution to the haredi concentrations, where there are almost no licensed gun holders."
Rabbi Tzvi Klebanow, President & Co-Founder of the Nahal Haredi Organization, expressed tremendous pride with this new initiative. "Nahal Haredi soldiers have proven themselves battle-worthy in their combat service. Now as contributing citizens, they have once again stepped up to the plate to provide another layer of security to the public."
Avishai Cohen, a member of the Jerusalem City Council, one of the initiators of the project, and the leader of the project in the city, said: "I am happy and excited to lead and promote the project where citizens and residents of Jerusalem can take a professional and significant part in returning personal security to the public space. I have no doubt that we [will] see this important initiative in more cities. At this time I would like to thank our mayor, Mr. Moshe Lion, that gave us his blessing and full cooperation, and Netzach Yehuda Association and its well trained veterans that are leading this important task.."