Israelis have flooded gas-mask distribution centers this week as news of a pending attack on Syria emerged, Israel Hayom reports.
Residents in Haifa attempting to purchase gas masks are experiencing hours-long wait times and crowds due to a limited number of distribution centers.
The Israel Defense Forces emphasized that the Homefront Command had not issued any new instructions to citizens. It said that in the wake of the media reports, there had been about 20,000 calls to the command's hotline, and there were large crowds at the distribution centers. Despite the public demand, the IDF has not opened additional distribution stations.
There are only enough gas masks for about 60 percent of Israel's citizens. Most of these have already been distributed, and only thousands of masks are left in storage.
In Tel Aviv, too, thousands of people came to the post office branch on Hahagana Street. There too, fights and shouting were common. Disabled and elderly citizens sat helplessly in wheelchairs on the sidewalk outside as more agile citizens pushed ahead of them, and pregnant women were jostled in the lines. Mothers with babies born in the last year were directed to a special line, but even there, pandemonium ruled, with the women and young babies waiting hours outside in the August heat.
Increased demand has led to an online market for gas masks with hundreds of masks being sold online in China, German, and Russia.