Civil Defence Law, 5711-1951
חוק ההתגוננות האזרחית, תשי"א-1951
Published: 1951-03-21Consolidated Hebrew text as of 2024-11-07 · Last amended 2024-03-21✓ Amendment status checked against the Knesset legislation record on 2026-09-29
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The Hebrew text as published in Reshumot (ספר החוקים) and on the Knesset website is the sole authoritative and legally binding version. In any discrepancy, the Hebrew text prevails.
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Chapter VIII: General
Service of documents§
23.
(a)Any Order, notice or demand (hereinafter – document) which under the civil defence laws is required to be served in writing on the person for whom it is intended may be served –
(1)by delivery to that person;
(2)by delivery to a member of his family residing with him who is aged 18 or over;
(3)by sending to that person by registered post, to the address of his usual or last place of residence or business;
(4)(Repealed)
(b)Where the time of service of a document has not been proved, it shall be deemed –
(1)to have been served upon the expiry of twelve hours from the time of delivery – if delivered pursuant to subsection (a)(2);
(2)to have been served upon the expiry of seventy-two hours from the time of delivery for dispatch – if sent pursuant to subsection (a)(3);
(3)(Repealed)
(c)Where it is impossible to serve a document in accordance with the provisions of subsection (a), it may be served by displaying it in a conspicuous manner on the exterior or interior of the place to which the document relates, or by publication in at least three daily newspapers, and it shall be deemed to have been served upon the expiry of 48 hours after its display or upon the expiry of 24 hours after its last publication as aforesaid, as the case may be, unless the person for whom the document was intended proves that its contents did not come to his knowledge.
Deduction of a local authority's debt from amounts due from the Treasury§
23a.
(a)Out of amounts due from the State Treasury to a local authority under law, agreement or otherwise, the State Treasury may pay to the Home Front Command, upon the demand of the Home Front Command and with the approval of the Minister of Interior, any debt due to the Home Front Command from that local authority under sections 10(e) or 10a, in whole or in part, to the extent that the amount due to the local authority is not subject to any pledge, charge (security interest), attachment or other prohibition on transfer, and the payment to the Home Front Command shall be deemed a payment to the local authority.
(b)This Section does not derogate from other means of collection of a debt owed by a local authority to the Home Front Command.
Offences§
24.
(a)(Repealed)
(b)A person who does any of the following:
(1)contravenes the civil defence laws or is negligent in their fulfilment, and no other penalty for the offence is prescribed in this Law;
(2)wears the uniform or bears the insignia of the Home Front Command without being authorised to do so;
(3)knowingly obstructs a member of the Home Front Command in the performance of his duties or in the exercise of his powers vested in him under the civil defence laws,
is liable to three months' imprisonment or a fine, and if the offence was committed during a special home front situation, is liable to one year's imprisonment or a fine.
(c)A person who, without a permit from the head of the Home Front Command or from a person authorised by him in writing, used the words "civil defence", "Home Front Command", "approved by the head of the Home Front Command" or other words capable of creating the impression of patronage or approval on behalf of the Home Front Command, to describe a group of persons, a business, a profession, an institution, a service, a product or the like, whether by specifying their name or otherwise, is liable to a fine.
(d)Where a person has been convicted of an offence under this Section and the offence is a continuing offence, he is liable, in addition to any penalty under subsections (a) to (c), to a fine or two days' imprisonment for each day on which the offence continues after conviction or after the service of a written warning by a person authorised to do so by the head of the Home Front Command.
(e)Where a corporation is charged with an offence under subsection (b), every person who, at the time of the offence, was the head, secretary, trustee, director or manager of the corporation shall also be charged therewith, unless he proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge or that he took all appropriate measures to prevent it.
(f)Where an owner of an enterprise is convicted of an offence under subsection (b)(1) by reason of non-fulfilment of an obligation imposed on him regarding the installation of a shelter for the enterprise or its maintenance, the court may, in addition to any penalty it is empowered to impose, order the closure of the enterprise or a part thereof until the shelter is installed or until repairs and modifications are made thereto, or for a shorter period.
(g)A person who contravenes the provisions of section 15(b) is liable to one year's imprisonment or a fine. The court may, in addition to any penalty it is empowered to impose, and after giving the person in possession of the shelter an opportunity to state his arguments, order any of the following, in whole or in part:
(1)the cessation of any use of the shelter that contravenes the civil defence laws;
(2)the vacation of the shelter by the person in possession;
(3)the transfer of the shelter to such person as the court sees fit in the circumstances of the matter, in order to ensure the use of the shelter in accordance with the civil defence laws.
(h)The Attorney General or his representative may claim, in civil proceedings concerning the cessation of use of a shelter, its vacation and transfer, any relief that the court is empowered to grant in proceedings under subsection (g).
(i)Notwithstanding anything provided in any law, offences under this Section shall be misdemeanours for all purposes.
(j)The provisions of this Section are in addition to, and do not derogate from, the criminal liability of a person who has committed an offence under any other law.
Fine offence§
24a.
(a)"fine offence" – an offence against the civil defence laws which the Minister of Defence, with the consent of the Minister of Justice, has declared by Order in Reshumot (Official Gazette) to be a fine offence, generally or subject to conditions or limitations as he has prescribed.
(b)(Repealed)
(c)(Repealed)
(d)The Minister of Defence shall prescribe by Order –
(1)the rate of the fine for each fine offence, and for each repeated or additional fine offence committed by the same person, provided that the rate of the fine shall not exceed five hundred liras for a first offence and one thousand liras for a repeated or additional offence, and he may prescribe different rates for an offence having regard to the circumstances of its commission;
(2)(Repealed)
(3)(Repealed)
(e)(Repealed)
(f)(Repealed)
24b.§
(Repealed — תשע״א)
Repeal§
25.
The following Regulations are hereby repealed:
(a)Emergency Regulations (Blackout), 5708-1948;
(b)Emergency Regulations (Protection of Windshields), 5708-1948;
(c)Emergency Regulations (Civil Defence), 5708-1948;
(d)Emergency Regulations (Shelters), 5708-1948.
Transitional provisions§
26.
(a)A place evacuated before the commencement of this Law pursuant to regulation 5 of the Emergency Regulations (Shelters), 5708-1948 (in this Section – the previous Regulations), shall be deemed, for the purpose of the payment of participation fees and the return of possession thereof, to have been evacuated under section 16.
(b)Expenses which a person is entitled, on the eve of the commencement of this Law, to collect under regulation 6 of the previous Regulations shall be deemed to be expenses which that person is entitled to collect under section 18.
(c)Any amount paid by a tenant or sub-tenant before the commencement of this Law under regulation 6 of the previous Regulations shall be subject to the provisions of section 19(e), as if it were an amount paid as participation fees under section 18 or section 19(h).
Implementation and regulations§
27.
(a)The Minister of Defence is responsible for the implementation of this Law.
(b)The Minister of Defence may, with the consent of the Minister of Interior, make Regulations on the following matters:
(1)the imposition of an obligation on local authorities to make available real property in their possession for civil defence purposes;
(2)the supply of equipment, vehicles, fire-fighting means and other materials in the possession of local authorities, for civil defence purposes during a special home front situation or during an attack or during Home Front Command exercises;
(3)the making available of employees of local authorities for civil defence purposes during a special home front situation or during an attack or during Home Front Command exercises;
(4)the provision of assistance and support to the Home Front Command by local authorities for the purpose of evacuating and housing the population;
(4a)standards and specifications for categories of equipment capable of being used for civil defence purposes that is purchased by local authorities or by auxiliary organisations for fire-fighting and first aid;
(5)any other participation by local authorities in the implementation of civil defence plans for their area of jurisdiction.
(6)the conditions and rules regarding the grant of an exemption from the construction of a shelter or its enlargement as referred to in section 14(g);
(7)the establishment of a fund as referred to in section 14(g)(3).
(bb) Where an obligation has been imposed as referred to in subsection (b)(1) and the local authority does not have real property for that purpose, it is required to take the necessary steps to obtain real property for the prescribed purpose, provided that the head of the Home Front Command, or a person authorised by him to do so, shall submit to the local authority the list of real property required by the Home Front Command in a given fiscal year before the commencement of that year; however, this limiting condition shall not apply if the need for real property arises at a later date due to unforeseen reasons.
(c)The Minister of Defence may make Regulations on any other matter relating to the implementation of this Law, including the following matters –
(1)payments from Home Front Command funds for medical treatment or financial loss caused to a member of the Home Front Command in connection with an injury or illness that occurred while he was on duty and as a result of his duty, and that did not give rise to consequences requiring the State Treasury to make payments under the laws specified in section 8(g);
(2)the regulation of traffic on roads during an attack or during a special home front situation or Home Front Command exercises;
(3)the conduct of the civilian population in public places during an attack or during a special home front situation or during Home Front Command exercises;
(4)(Repealed)
(4a)the obligation of owners of enterprises, institutions or other places where people are accustomed to gather, to maintain and install equipment for civil defence purposes;
(5)the camouflage of structures and installations against aerial detection;
(6)the conditions under which it is permitted to display a light during blackout hours;
(7)the protection of windshields of all types by their owners or occupiers.
(8)methods of storage of hazardous materials;
(9)the obligation of owners of wells and water reservoirs to supply water during a special home front situation for civil defence purposes;
(10)the prevention of the use of alarm and all-clear signals prescribed under section 2(h) or the restriction of their use, and also the manner of notifying the public of the signals to which Regulations under this paragraph apply.
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