A prominent Christian organization in Jerusalem has renovated 140 bomb shelters in the Upper Galilee. The effort comes as intermittent Hezbollah attacks from Lebanon continue for the third straight month.
The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem funded the $775,000 project, refurbishing 73 shelters in the town of Shlomi and 67 in the city of Ma’alot-Tarshiha, both near the northern border.
The shelters had fallen into disrepair since they were last used during the 2006 Second Lebanon War, with deficiencies including a lack of proper lighting, ventilation and plumbing.
A renovated bomb shelter in Ma’alot-Tarshiha with new air conditioning, fans and Wi-Fi. Photo by Jonathan Parsons/ICEJ.
An old bomb shelter in Ma’alot. Photo by Jonathan Parsons/ICEJ.
Nine portable above-ground bomb shelters were also delivered to Shlomi with the group’s financial assistance, and an additional nine are in the works.
The two communities were among those evacuated when Hezbollah began firing on northern Israel 10 days after the war with Hamas broke out when the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas invaded the Israel on Oct. 7.
The ICEJ, the largest evangelical organization in the Holy Land, has worked on behalf of the Jewish state for four decades.
“On behalf of Christians around the world, we want to help the residents of vulnerable communities on Israel’s border feel secure enough to return to their homes as soon as possible,” said ICEJ spokesman David Parsons. “The Jewish nation and people are facing hatred and threats here and around the world, but our love for Israel is greater still.”
Since the Hamas invasion and attack on Israel, the two terrorist groups have fired more than 11,000 rockets at Israeli communities.