HADERA, Israel – A half-dozen people wearing head-to-toe suits designed to protect them from a nerve agent cluster around a gurney in the Hillel Yaffe Medical Center Emergency Room, hastily washing the victim of a sarin gas attack.
A steady stream of ambulances pull up outside, and groups of Israeli Defense Force Home Front Command soldiers offload patients and walk them through a series of outdoor decontamination showers before bringing them inside for treatment in the ER.
This time, it is an exercise, dubbed Silver Jewel, but all involved move with the urgency of a real event, perhaps spurred by the reality of living in a country faced with multiple constant threats.
Meanwhile, half the ER continues to treat real patients arriving with real ailments and real injuries, and passersby pause on the sidewalks outside to watch the exercise before continuing on with the activities of daily living.
Silver Jewel unfolds right in the heart of this city of 80,000, an hour north of Tel Aviv. The Home Front Command and the civil authorities it supports – police, paramedics, doctors – exercise in the midst of the civilian population.
Air Force Gen. Joseph Lengyel makes a mental note of the added realism created by conducting a large-scale exercise in the city while normal life continues – and of how doing this sensitizes civilians to real threats, encouraging them to be both prepared and resilient in the face of adversity. This approach is generally not taken in the United States, where similar exercises tend to occur away from population centers, out of sight.
"The notion of civil defense was once a part of every American's daily life," Lengyel says. "It's important to consider the need to be able to take care of ourselves and our neighbors."
Perhaps, Lengyel thinks, the National Guard could adopt a similar exercise construct. Silver Jewel was held at three locations – the working hospital, a real train hit by a vehicle on a regular line, and a civic center packed with civilian volunteers who were evaluated, evacuated and treated after a simulated chemical weapon attack.
The chief of the National Guard Bureau observed Silver Jewel as part of a three-day visit here leading a delegation that included senior military and civilian advisors and Army Maj. Gen. Richard Hayes, the adjutant general of the Illinois National Guard.
Ideas such as exercising with civilians – and the broader concept of building the resilience of the civilian population in the face of natural or manmade disasters – illustrate how a homeland security cooperation partnership between the National Guard and the HFC has matured into a robust, two-way relationship based on mutual values and common interests that benefits both organizations.
The 380-year-old National Guard offers knowledge and expertise to the quarter-century-old HFC – and the Guard gains knowledge and expertise.
Among other examples during this visit: A hyperlocal Israeli emergency alert system that notifies only residents in affected areas, rather than broad swaths of the population, many of whom might not actually be affected. And handheld devices that give first responders detailed information about residents they are rushing to help, before they even arrive, such as pre-existing medical conditions or the presence of very young children or elderly people.
"This relationship has blossomed," Lengyel said. "The Home Front Command has similar missions, similar goals to the National Guard: to react, respond; to protect lives; to protect property; to help society recover."
Both the National Guard and the HFC have evolved since 2005, when the two began bilateral engagement exchanges.
Back then, now-retired Army Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum visited as the National Guard's most senior general. Now, Lengyel visited as both the Guard's senior officer and also a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the visit informed both positions. He gained insights for the Guard – and insights that inform his contributions to the Joint Chiefs.
Back then, the HFC's responsibilities were still maturing, sometimes overlapping with other agencies such as the National Emergency Management Authority, Israel's equivalent of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Now, lines of effort are more clearly defined.
Now, its commander, Maj. Gen. Yoel Strick, has just been selected to lead Israel's prestigious Northern Command, responsible for the country's northern border with Syria and Lebanon – a promotion considered a compliment both to Strick personally and to the HFC. He is the second HFC commanding general to be tapped for this premier command.
"Israel is a geographically small country with threats on many sides," Lengyel said. "They have been attacked, routinely, where danger is a daily part of life."
Perhaps as a result, Israel is notable for an extraordinary level of societal resilience, evidenced both by physical preparations such as the ubiquitous bomb shelters in homes, schools and places of work and also by a mindset that sets a premium on continuing as normal a life as possible even during upheaval.
When natural or manmade disaster strikes, Israelis do not wait for first responders – they immediately start helping themselves and each other, said Col. Ariel Blitz, the HFC's civilian defense commander.
This societal resilience may also be boosted by the requirement that the majority of Israeli citizens complete about two years of military service, which leaves residents with an increased understanding of threats, a familiarity with the tasks faced by first responders and the knowledge to help themselves.
Lengyel saw a parallel between this system and the National Guard, whose traditional, part-time members bring military-acquired skills to their communities in virtually every zip code in the United States, always ready to put those skills to work when disaster strikes in their neighborhoods, communities or states and territories.
During his visit, Lengyel spent time with Israeli leaders who specialize in responding to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents, a mission shared by National Guard units. He met with the director of the NEMA, which works with the HFC, just as FEMA works with the National Guard. He visited with senior Israeli military leaders, including the commander of Israel's air force, and he spent time with Israeli soldiers and airmen.
Three states lead the National Guard's partnership in homeland defense cooperation with the HFC.
The Illinois National Guard leads joint information and training exchanges centered on chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats. The Indiana National Guard specializes in joint efforts regarding urban search and rescue. And the Colorado National Guard is focused on societal resilience, developing a center of excellence to help the National Guard bring lessons learned from the Israelis to help build civilian resilience in the United States.
"Cyber is another area where we can perhaps help each other," Lengyel said after his visit. "There may be some potential opportunities there."
Lengyel came away impressed by the depth and maturity of the Guard's relationship with the Home Front Command.
"It's what we do," he said. "Working with the geographic combatant commanders and U.S. ambassadors, we build international security cooperation relationships that are real, built on trust, and enduring."