Estonia can learn from Israel's decades of experience with war, particularly when it comes to building shelters, warning the public about attacks and preparing people for crises, Israeli civil defense expert Yoram Laredo says.
Israelis have been hardened by various wars.
"Unfortunately, since the establishment of the state in 1948, there has been a war every 10 years. So, sadly, we have experienced different types of warfare," said Israeli civil defense expert Yoram Laredo on ERR's "Välisilm" foreign affairs program.
When it comes to shelters, for example, Israel is often held up as a model. However, the system in which everyone knows where to go has taken decades to develop. The turning point came with the 1991 Gulf War.
"That was a lesson we learned from the Gulf War. At the time, Iraq fired ballistic missiles at Israel for the first time. Following that tragic event, we introduced a rule requiring every newly constructed building and apartment to have a shelter. Today, 70 percent of Israeli citizens have a shelter in their homes. It takes time," Laredo said.
But what could be done more quickly, including in Estonia?
"My recommendation is to bring in engineers and inspect every underground parking garage. If they can be shown to withstand ballistic missile strikes, they can be designated as shelters for large numbers of people. These are things that can be done using existing resources," Laredo said.
The most important thing is to be prepared for a crisis.
"You need to prepare your citizens for what is coming and keep them informed. The information available must be shared because that is the first step toward resilience. People break down psychologically when something happens that they did not expect. If the government communicates with people and warns them that there will be power outages, communications disruptions and supply chain problems, and explains how these will be handled, citizens will be able to cope," Laredo said.
Estonia can also learn from Israel's approach to warning people about attacks.
"Israel has a highly sophisticated system that detects all objects flying toward the country, whether from nearby or far away, regardless of their shape or type. The most important element is the siren system. There are thousands of sirens on rooftops. In addition, mobile apps, the internet, radio and television all work in sync. Someone might be watching television, using their phone or standing outside — the system warns them that a missile is on its way. The best thing to do then is take shelter. After the first casualties, everyone knows what to do and people become very disciplined. Unfortunately, that is how it works," Laredo said.
However, when several generations have grown up without experiencing war, it is difficult to make people understand what they need to be prepared for.
"It is comparable to how we anticipate an earthquake in Israel. Our region experiences a devastating earthquake every 100 years. There has been no such earthquake in the history of modern Israel. The last one occurred 100 years ago, before the State of Israel was established. How do you convince the population that an earthquake could strike at any moment?" the expert said.
Israel learned a harsh lesson three years ago when one of the world's best intelligence services allowed the October 7 tragedy to happen because of overconfidence.
"You have to constantly reassess your strategic assumptions and paradigms. If you fail to do that and rely solely on technological superiority without questioning your interpretation of intelligence, things like this happen. That is Israel's most important lesson: Strategic assumptions and interpretations of intelligence must be constantly reassessed rather than rigidly adhered to," Laredo said.
Following October 7, the small state of Israel also had to evacuate large numbers of people.
"The State of Israel evacuated 125,000 people, including 60,000 from the north. Communities along the northern border were evacuated because, at the time, we did not know whether Hezbollah would open a second front there. Communities around Gaza were also evacuated. Those 125,000 people lived in hotels for almost two years. And that really costs a lot of money," Laredo said.
It is also essential to maintain a constant state of crisis preparedness.
"Preparing for a crisis is like a muscle that needs to be exercised constantly. If you do not exercise that muscle, you become exhausted and when a crisis strikes, you eventually break down psychologically. That is what we have learned. Unfortunately, we constantly face real incidents and wars, so we are practicing all the time," Laredo said.
--