IDF Home Front Command revamps TV alert system with ‘clearer’ visuals
More alerts can be displayed at once, they will be written in black text on white background, and will pop up on side of content rather than on top of it
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The Israel Defense Forces’ Home Front Command is rolling out a visual overhaul to its alerts displayed on live television, which it said Wednesday will be “faster, more accessible and clearer” than before.
Starting Thursday, the alerts will be displayed on the side of the content, rather than being inserted on top of it.
The update also allows for more alert locations to be displayed at once.
The alerts’ colors have also changed, from bright orange with white text to a white background with black text. The Home Front Command said this will make them easier to see for those with visual impairment.
The Home Front Command sends out alerts for rockets, missiles or drone attacks, as well as terrorist infiltrations, earthquakes, tsunamis and hazardous material leaks.
Last month, the Home Front Command rolled out a new alert system based on Cell Broadcast, which is a method of sending short messages to multiple phone users in a defined area. Many other countries have similar systems in place.
The Home Front Command said the system will “enable the receipt of a message in large-scale emergency events, such as rocket fire on Israel.”
The military branch also offers an app, which was launched in 2016. It tracks users based on their GPS location and alerts them to threats in their immediate area by sounding an alert and showing a message.
Israelis have faced daily rocket attacks since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war on October 7, with projectiles launched at the country by terror groups in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthi rebels in Yemen, and pro-Iran militias in Syria and Iraq.
