IDF recommends thickening bomb shelter window covers in Gaza border communities

The head of the IDF’s Home Front Command tells municipal chiefs in the so-called Gaza periphery that he’ll recommend that thicker steel plates be placed over the windows of bomb shelters in communities near the coastal enclave, the military says.

An Israel Defense Forces statement says under Maj. Gen. Uri Gordin’s recommendation, the steel plates in communities within 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) will be replaced with ones that are 32 millimeters thick, citing “developing capabilities” among Palestinian terrorists in the Gaza Strip.

The military says the move was based on a further investigation into a piece of rocket shrapnel that pierced the metal window covering of a bomb shelter in the border town of Sderot, killing 5-year-old Ido Avigal during the recent fighting against Gaza’s Hamas rulers and other terror groups.

“We are committed more than anything to defending Israeli citizens and are acting to ensure the most relevant protective measures in accordance with the developing threats,” Gordin is quoted saying in the statement.