The Ashkelon municipal parents' commission announced Tuesday morning that it is boycotting the "Turning Point 4" defense drill, which is planned to climax Wednesday morning with a minute-and-a-half siren test in most parts of the state. In a letter to Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai, the parents protested the lack of fortified facilities for their children in city schools, saying their children were well drilled in procedures yet unfortified facilities amounted to death traps.

A statement from Vilnai's office expressed regret at the action and asked the parents to alter their minds. The deputy minister is scheduled to discuss the situation with the mayor of Ashkelon next week. The statement noted that an in-depth professional meeting on the situation is scheduled for next month in reply to a Supreme Court decree asking the state to elaborate the discontinuation of a program to fortify Ashkelon schools.

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