Aug.14, 2012 | 4:59 AM–In the heart of the Jerusalem hills is a “pit” which, like its twin in the Tel Aviv headquarters of the Defense Ministry, is intended for use by top government officials in the event of a national security emergency.

It’s safe to assume that, in light of growing talks during the past few weeks about an Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear facilities, the pits have been getting thorough inspections and sprucing up.

Construction on the Jerusalem underground war room began in 2002, under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, and it took a few years and somewhere between NIS 500 million and NIS 1 billion to complete.

In the event of an Israeli strike on Iran and an anticipated Iranian counterstrike, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the core of government activities will likely move to the pit in the Jerusalem hills, while Defense Minister Ehud Barak and the top commanders of the Israel Defense Forces can be expected to go underground in Tel Aviv.

They aren’t the only ones preparing for an emergency. The Bank of Israel, for example, has its own underground hideaway, more than an hour’s drive from Jerusalem, as does the Finance Ministry, while the Central Bureau of Statistics protects its precious data from nuclear attack with radiation-proof storage facilities…Read More>>

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