AIsraeli rescue workers wear gas masks as they attend to wounded civilians during a drill simulating a chemical attack on a school in Ramat Gan near Tel Aviv March 20, 2007. Air raid sirens sounded across Israel on Tuesday as part of a civil defence exercise that included simulated chemical missile strikes on major cities.  (Xinhua/Reuters photo) Gallery>>>

    TEL AVIV, Israel, March 20 (Xinhua) -- Israel began on Tuesday afternoon a two-day nationwide defense drill, one of the most extensive civil exercises ever staged.

    At local time 2:00 p.m. (1200 GMT), air-raid sirens lasting 90 seconds were heard in many parts of the country, except for northern Israel and the area neighboring Palestinian Gaza Strip for avoiding panic.

    With an involvement of 5,000 police, or 25 percent of the overall operational force, and about 130 communities, the two-day drill is meant to improve coordination between the different security forces and rescue crews as well as exam the preparedness of local officials for different emergency scenarios.

    During an exercise based on chemical weapon attack scenario at a school near Tel Aviv, 50 supposed wounded people were rushed to hospital in time under the full coordination of all concerned units involving 500 people, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told Xinhua after the exercise.

    The drill was believed to be planned after the army and Home Front Command were blamed for their misconduct in protecting northern Israel from Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah's rocket attacks which killed 159 Israelis, including 39 civilians, in last summer's Israel-Hezbollah conflict.