The Civil Guard was established on July 10 , 1974 as a group of civilians volunteered to do night patrols in near-border neighborhoods , which were exposed to Palestinian terror attacks , and in particular following the Ma'alot massacre of May 15 , 1974 . Later , the focus was shifted from counter terror patrols to assist daily police work such as fighting crime and neighborhood violence . In 2004 , the Civil Guard reportedly had some 70,000 volunteers , 28 % of them women . 20,000 new volunteers joined that year and 17,000 left the service . The typical volunteer profile is a 40 - to 55-year-old upper-middle-class male , married with children . Due to the high level of required commitment , 20 % of all volunteers quit during their first year of service . Between 1974 &ndash; 2004 , over half a million citizens volunteered for the Civil Guard
Ma'alot massacre
Ma'alot massacre
Civil Guard (Israel)