Knesset panel to discuss lack of adequate shelters for one-third of population as well as in schools, hospitals

By Ariela Karmel

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8 March 2026, 1:50 pm

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Ariela Karmel is a political correspondent at The Times of Israel. She previously reported for Calcalist and Haaretz. She holds an MA in Middle Eastern and African History from Tel Aviv University and a BA in Political Science from the University of British Columbia.

People take shelter in an underground train station in Tel Aviv, March 7, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

The Knesset State Control Committee will hold a discussion tomorrow regarding the lack of sufficient bomb shelters amid Israel’s conflict with Iran, following the publication of a report last week that found that over three million citizens — roughly one-third of the population — does not have adequate protection.

According to the Knesset Research Center report, citing data from the Home Front Command and the state comptroller, roughly 3.19 million residents (about 33% of the population) lack access to any protection from missile and rocket attacks — either a reinforced safe room, a public shelter, or “other forms of standard protective infrastructure.”

This is despite several reports from the State Comptroller’s Office on the subject since Israel’s 12-day war against Iran in June. The most recent report, published in January, will be the focus of the committee’s discussion tomorrow.

Among the findings of that report was that the Arab community is among the least protected with less than 0.5% percent of public shelters in the country located in Arab towns, many of which are unfit for use.

Additionally, about 500,000 children are studying in schools without sufficient shelter and the Education Ministry “has no data at all” regarding whether there is shelter in over 50% of kindergartens.

The situation is also dire in hospitals. The report found that a majority of inpatient beds (56%) and nearly half of operating rooms (41%) lack sufficient protection. In geriatric hospitals, 63% of beds lack protection, and in psychiatric hospitals, the number rises to 75%.