Pines-Paz (Labor), chairman of the Knesset's Constitution Committee, said Wednesday that during a break-in at Ministry of Health warehouses in June 2000, 7 million shekels' worth of antibiotics intended for use against anthrax was stolen. "The thieves were never caught and the stock of the antibiotics was never replaced," he said.

Pines-Paz said that a financial dispute between the

"There are not enough antibiotics to deal with an attack of anthrax on Israel" - MK Ophir Pines-Paz

Ministry of Finance and the Health Ministry over where to buy the needed antibiotics, and at what price they would be purchased, was delaying the re-supply of the medicine. "I am not attempting to cause panic in the public," he said, "but there are not enough antibiotics to deal with a biological attack of anthrax on the State of Israel."

Dr. Meir Oren, chairman of the Ministry of Health's steering committee for biological readiness and head of the Hillel Yaffe Medical Center, sought to reassure the public by stating that efforts are underway to replace the antibiotics supply. "Since the theft of the antibiotics, the Ministry of Health has managed to replace part of the stock, and the rest is being replaced gradually," he said. "If there is an emergency there would be no problem getting antibiotics, either locally or specially flown into Israel," he added.

Yediot Aharonot reported that the Ministry of Health is refreshing existing instructions for the quick identification of biological terror attacks. According to Dr. Yehuda Baruch, head of medical administration at the ministry, detailed information has been sent to hospitals, clinics and laboratories describing the clinical nature of the anthrax disease and listing contact information for reporting disease indications.

Technion report indicates Israel is ready for non-conventional warfare
A survey conducted last summer (before the reported theft) by the Technion for the IDF's Home Command indicated that the Israeli population is prepared for a biological or chemical attack.

"If terrorists were to try and spread anthrax around, for instance, the relevant agencies would be ready to deal with it, as would the population in general," said Prof. Alan Kirschenbaum, of the Behavioral Science Department of the Technion's Industrial Engineering and Management Faculty.

The survey dealt mainly with the use of gas masks, atropine injections (the antidote for most nerve and blister gases), and preparing sealed rooms. Similar research was conducted independently by Kirschenbaum prior to the start of the Gulf War, and results were compared to assess the efficiency of the system and instruction courses and the level of anxiety among citizens.

The survey found that more than 95% of the population has gas mask kits and that the skill level in their use is 90%, the Jerusalem Post reported. Kirschenbaum noted that 20% of all homes in Israel were built with sealed security rooms and that the rest of the population has the means to secure similar protection in the event of an attack.

"Given the alternatives, the gas mask kits and sealed rooms are probably the best means to save as many lives as possible and keep people healthy were there to be a non-conventional attack on Israel by another country or by terrorists," Kirschenbaum said.

Increased demand at gas mask centers continues
Despite assessments of security officials in the last few days that Iraq is not a target at this stage of America's war on terrorism, and therefore the threat of rocket attacks on Israel remained small, the Israeli public continued to crowd into gas mask distribution centers around the country.

Some 30,000 people refreshed their gas mask protection kits Wednesday, a number 10 times higher than a regular day before the September 11 terror attacks on the United States. Since that date, approximately 300,000 citizens have visited the centers. According to Yediot Aharonot, there are still hundreds of thousands of citizens who have not visited the gas mask distribution centers, do not have valid kits or have no kits at all for their children.

Due to the increased demand for gas mask kits, distribution centers will continue to operate from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. in many locations around the country.

Maariv reported today that Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer and IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Shaul Mofaz have proposed a 20-shekel charge for gas mask replacements. The two reportedly raised the suggestion at a recent meeting with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon as a means of meeting the increased budgetary demands of the Defense Ministry. Sharon decided at this stage to attempt to finance the Home Command's equipment needs within the existing ministry budget.

Brig. Gen. (res) Arnon Ben-Ami recently raised a proposal of selling gas masks at supermarkets and post offices. Ben-Ami, who serves as chairman of Israel's emergency economics committee under the Ministry of Defense, believes that responsibility for civil defense in Israel should be transferred away from the IDF to a government agency. "It is difficult for the army to see citizens as 'clients,'" he said, referring to recent operations, such as the Versailles wedding hall collapse, when the IDF was called in to rescue civilians.

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