(JNS) Israel’s Deputy Defense Minister Alon Schuster met with the heads of local councils in the country’s north and provided details about plans to install rocket-proof protection in homes near the Lebanon border.

Under the Defense Ministry’s plan, dubbed “Defender of the North,” work will begin next month in eight communities located up to one kilometer from the border to fortify homes.

Schuster said as a result of “the conclusion and approval of the defense budget under the leadership of Defense Minister Benny Gantz, we are ensuring the implementation of the ‘Defender of the North’ program.” The program was approved by the political-security cabinet in 2018.

Schuster added that bolstering homes in the north will form a “critical issue in the home front and the civilian resilience in the next conflict.”