During training sessions in Israel, American police delegations meet with Israeli military, police, and intelligence agencies and taught what Israel calls counterterrorism, but is in fact no more than “refining methods of racial profiling.”

Israeli border police frisks a Palestinian ahead of a protest against Middle East peace plan announced Tuesday by US President Donald Trump, which strongly favors Israel, in Jerusalem, Wednesday, Jan 29, 2020. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

By Miko Peled,

Racism and violence against people of color in the U.S. is nothing new. In fact, the United States, with its claims to be “the land of the free,” has always been a racist, genocidal and violent state. It was founded on genocide of the native people and on the backs African slaves. The United States committed the most egregious war crimes in the history of mankind, including genocide, the use of nuclear weapons, destruction of democracies and support for murderous dictators around the world, and the list goes on and on from the earliest days of the Union to this very day.

The state of Israel, which historically speaking is a new creation, was also founded on genocide and racism. For close to one hundred years the Zionist movement which created Israel has been engaged in a brutal campaign to rid Palestine of its indegenous population and give the land to Jewish colonizers. It should, therefore, come as no surprise that good relations exist between the United States and Israel.

There are countless areas of life in the U.S. in which Israel and various Zionist organizations influence and interfere. The Jewish Federation, the Anti-Defamation League, and AIPAC are the most commonly recognized but are only three out of countless organizations that operate throughout the fifty states and relentlessly pursue Israeli interests in all facets of American life.

These organizations interfere in U.S. elections by pouring money into the campaigns of  pro-Israeli candidates; they are engaged in heavily influencing the outcome of trials where the defendants are Arabs or Muslims, and they finance campaigns to edit and rewrite curricula in public schools so that the Middle East is always taught in a way that supports the Zionist narrative.

 

A deadly exchange

As the video clip of a Minnesota police officer slowly and callously choking George Floyd to death went viral, many people, including myself, remembered Palestine. Officer Derek Chauvin, who casually placed his knee on George Floyd’s neck, could have easily been an Israeli soldier or police officer holding down a Palestinian. The way he just sat there, took a knee on Floyd’s neck, ignoring Floyd who repeatedly said he cannot breathe, ignoring Floyd as he begged him to allow him to breathe and ignoring the fact that the man under his knee was slowly suffocating to death made it clear that this cop was a predator and George Floyd was merely his prey.

American Israeli police

Since 9/11, many American police forces have been trained by Israeli security experts. Photos | AP

This happens in America just as it happens in Palestine. The similarities are no coincidence and they may well be the result of what has become known as the “Deadly Exchange,” a collaboration between the two racist states who see no problem in executing and watching the slow agonizing death of black and brown people.

Deadly Exchange is the name of a campaign to stop the collaboration between police departments across the United States and the state of Israel. The campaign put out an extensive report that outlines the cooperation between law enforcement in the U.S. and Israel. The report also lists the dangers and threats that this exchange poses to people of color in the United States.

 

Israeli democracy and security

Israel is wrongly heralded as a democracy facing perpetual threat. In reality, it is an apartheid state and its security apparatus is dedicated neither to safety nor security as it claims, but rather to the subjugation of Palestinians. During training sessions in Israel, U.S. law enforcement delegations meet with Israeli military, police, and intelligence agencies. They are given “opportunities” to learn about what Israel calls counterterrorism, but is in fact no more than “refining methods of racial profiling.”

Cynically taking advantage of the 9/11 attacks, within months of the attacks, American law enforcement representatives set out to Israel for their first official training expeditions. The purpose was to learn from Isreal’s so-called “expertise” in what has become known as counter-terrorism. Counter-Terrorism, it is worth noting here, is a euphemism for the violent means used to subjugate oppressed people.

Never the Aggressor: Israel Is Convinced of Its Own Benevolence
Israel has convinced itself that the violence perpetrated by its soldiers is always justified, benevolent, and glorious.
The very first delegation to Israel, according to Deadly Exchange, included police chiefs and deputies from California, Texas, Maryland, Florida, and New York. The delegation also included FBI and CIA agents, future ICE officers, and directors of New York City MTA security.

Among the sponsors of this exchange program are the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), which claims to fight the defamation of Jewish people, but in fact is dedicated to defamation of Arabs and Muslims, and the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs (JINSA). JISNA claims it is dedicated to “educating Congressional, military and civilian national security decision-makers on American defense and strategic interests,”  the cornerstone of which, according to JINSA, “is a robust U.S.-Israeli security cooperation.” Both groups are well funded Zionist organizations that are dedicated to promoting and defending Israeli violence and racism no matter what.

 

Systemic racism

One of the many similarities between Israel and the United States is their propensity for systemic racism. From the very beginning, Israel has imposed an apartheid regime in occupied Palestine and Palestinian citizens of Israel are subjected to systematic profiling. This means that interactions with the Israeli police regularly lead to “excessive and often lethal use of force deployed with impunity.”

Not unlike the United States where black and brown Americans make up the majority of the prison population, in Israeli prisons, Palestinian citizens of Israel represent a disproportionate number of those incarcerated. A report in the Israeli publication Mekomit states that Palestinian citizens of Israel, who make up about 20 percent of the overall population, comprise over 40 percent of the prison population, in fact, according to Mekomit, only about a quarter of prisoners held in Israeli prisons are Jewish, and amongst minors being held in Israeli prisons, only about 13 percent are Jews.

palestinian children

Israeli police place a Palestinian boy in a chokehold in Jerusalem’s Old City, July 17, 2017. Mahmoud Illean | AP

If we include “security prisoners,” who come from the occupied Palestinian West Bank, Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip, the numbers are even more grotesque, raising the percentage of Palestinians within the Israeli prison population to a staggering 73 percent.

Israeli policing utilizes an official policy where an entire population is guilty until proven innocent and naturally, this is part of the so-called counterterrorism training offered by Israel. It reinforces institutionalized racial profiling and even the targeting of social movements that demand racial justice.  

The Israeli government uses false claims of “terrorism” to treat all Palestinians as potential enemy combatants. The excuse of terrorism is also used in order to subjugate Palestinians to a different system of laws, which inevitably leads to more policing and higher rates of incarceration.

 

Media

The training Israel offers also includes methods to control the media. Members of law enforcement who have received the training reported that they “learned about how to intervene and shape media access and coverage of violence committed by the military and police.” The Israeli methods taught include how to use the media as an arm of the government and “reframe coverage of state violence.”

The Israeli government utilizes the office of the military censor to control all reporting on Israel’s use of force. It also reviews all books and other material before it can be made available to the public. The IDF Spokesperson’s office which also yields power over Israeli journalists, acts as Israel’s de facto public relations office, restricting and shaping local coverage of what it considers to be “security affairs.”

How Israel Legitimizes the Abuse of Palestinian Political Prisoners
Israel has long conflated political activism and resistance with terrorism as an effective tool to demonize Palestinian political prisoners.

It should be noted that in Israel there is very little criticism when it comes to the work of the army and other security agencies and reporters work very closely with the military to present its violence against Palestinians as justified. Palestinian dissent, even when it is expressed in the most peaceful methods, is regularly reported as violence and borderline terrorism.

Israel has “normalized” the use of military force to stamp out popular protests, thus contributing to the undermining of basic civil rights of Palestinians. These violent, forceful methods of controlling dissent are shown to the American police delegations through briefings and even live demonstrations.

 

Parallels to Palestine

The violent encounters black communities in the U.S. experience with the police have led many people to draw parallels between Palestinians and people of color in the United States. This created a real sense of solidarity between U.S. social movements and the Palestinian struggle for liberation, a solidarity that is increasingly becoming stronger and can potentially turn the tide of public opinion on this issue in the U.S.

In its report, the Deadly Exchange Campaign demands that “the American government end its violence in the name of security.” The report also states that “We hope that local governments nationwide heed the calls from communities across Palestine and the United States to help build a world with real safety that we all can inhabit with dignity.”

Feature photo | Israeli police frisk a Palestinian man in Jerusalem, Jan 29, 2020. Mahmoud Illean | AP

Miko Peled is an author and human rights activist born in Jerusalem. He is the author of “The General’s Son. Journey of an Israeli in Palestine,” and “Injustice, the Story of the Holy Land Foundation Five.”

Your Tax Free Donations Are Appreciated and Help Fund our Volunteer Website

Disclaimer: We at Prepare for Change (PFC) bring you information that is not offered by the mainstream news, and therefore may seem controversial. The opinions, views, statements, and/or information we present are not necessarily promoted, endorsed, espoused, or agreed to by Prepare for Change, its leadership Council, members, those who work with PFC, or those who read its content. However, they are hopefully provocative. Please use discernment! Use logical thinking, your own intuition and your own connection with Source, Spirit and Natural Laws to help you determine what is true and what is not. By sharing information and seeding dialogue, it is our goal to raise consciousness and awareness of higher truths to free us from enslavement of the matrix in this material realm.

7 COMMENTS

  1. Trump should be more humble and apologize, get all the cops together and have a serious talk about the brutal treatment they commit. All of this serves to tell the System that governs us. Respect us! Which is not because you have the power that comes out of treating people as they want, with this ignorant brutality! This serves the whole world, and that is why we are taking people on the streets in revolt, tired of the abuse of power!

    • Trump should apologize for “playing” along, yes. Playing along with the Covid 19 & these ‘False Flag’ shootings.

  2. New York City ‘Treasury Building’ Conveniently – Suspiciously, gets destroyed by Rioters. Sounds like what “They” pulled off during 911.

  3. there is for sure a lot of injustice done by Israel government for years and I was also involved as much as I could with my own protests ( because there are Israelis’ and and not only a few’ who disagree and would like to live in peace and prosperous with all people around /also arabs . ) and for sure there is a lot of crime done by Israeli leader who think he is forever king for some reason.
    plus ,I would be the last one who will voluntarily say a good word about Israelis most of their people I encountered my whole life only too advantage and treatment me badly .but guess it came to that..

    I follow this site for a few weeks and hopefully may give some constructive critic because maybe you should look into your original goals and beliefs for creating a world of compassion tolerance and love/ as seems’ in this case’ to be forgotten/
    I experience fear suspicious and hatred ( also by self hated Israelis / jews like the writer :totally understandable but know the origin for his shame as well ) .

    the amount of articles about one nation religion and all the accusations suggested in them are quit a lot . the choice of words and expressions toward a nation and one religion and by educated people with awareness publicly use and consider as legit is somewhat disturbing as well
    I really see a lot of anti Israel post here and although I have nothing to do with a right wing beliefs and am active so do for years already my best against mis justice. it is very blent here.
    I normally don’t even consider myself as Israeli. Im a combination of many origins and I wasn’t even born there but I never felt so bad about having an Israeli background as I feel here.a space created by a group of people who say they are after good. I visit this site and try to find some comfort and strength to keep on doing my active wok toward a better future and even if I do it only small scale but every time I enter this site I keep on being reminded Im part of this diabolic nation that wants to destroy the world. that I am Israel not even and Israel so get messages that Im only part of a system.. . I relocated again to my birth town Berlin and live here since 2012 and had no anti Semitic or others anti against me so its not that Im a person who looks for it..

    I wonder why not mention all the criminals then ?

    while Im being slaughtered and attacked for months now here in Berlin personally and non personally while nice experiments are being done on us . living unfortunately now right near an antenna tower and also document the progress of all the facilities installed on the rooftops . the roofs look in my area like war zone but no one bother to look up just keep on watching their cell phone
    I lost 10 kg the first 2-3 weeks having ( documented ) chemical burns on my hands that hurt like crazy but disappear without scar after 2-3 days. having here radiation of 2-3 times more than max allowed in the city ( bought a Giger ) . and other physical very hard extraordinary electromagnetic phenomenas that hurt my health and my dog health as well . I can sense all of this see and hear it all since February / march ( even Nov s last year . on the personal level of attacks I get from 5 G utilities ) but I don’t see any report of the experiments done on humans and all life forms in Berlin

    plus as activist who has studied in medical school and who challenges people here with my words and behavior I get scared lately to say something wrong in public now it got even dangerous to say something against masks and epidemics using academic text that I studied in Uni.
    we still need to wear masks and we live in city arrest for 3 months already.. no one says anything about the nice germans who became in seconds from cool loving young party dudes who welcome refugees to some extreme cold facsists who will stab your back . when I get answers from young German supermarket employees such as ” “””Germany””‘ has voted for putting on masks ” and when a costumer tells on me to the guard for not wearing the mask inside the store taking me to the boss and trying to public shame me ( when the workers themselves did not wear it because the law that very day didn’t obligate them ) I get worried,
    it really feels like east Germany 1975 sometime Germany 1940 and I wonder why no one mention this just talk about Israel and blame the Israelis again and agin we are aware and hear it for 2000 years now already. in loop .. its boring to hear it for thousands of years. sorry. so maybe change the record ? might be hight time while we shift in to 5 th dimension.. just for the sake of the planet and some tolerance between people / who cares about religions races origins nowadays ?
    maybe even dare to be one and with one destiny also together with the scary jews and Israelis those with tail and horns who ride on camels who just enjoy taking over banks as all Israelis are extremely rich living in mentions. ..
    I recently signed a world petition again 5 G . when filling my details there was no Israel option to chose from all the other countries. so now people are picky and really believe it is a good time to ban Israelis who want to fight the 5 G ?

    there is no bigger hate and fear than by those who have no knowledge . right ?

    maybe you will still have a nice opportunity to visit this country and especially amazing Jerusalem for a week or 2 just to have a small glimpse of what really is going on there. be the judge after living there or at least visit. please

    strange times indeed. when I hold hands with the German AFD natzi pary with the same believes about the current situation it will not change my beliefs and what I think as my truth . and I will keep on going even if Im hated here by the awakened or by the zombies .
    there is always a good reason to hate. that I know since Im a child already following my heart own truth already since then.

    thanks for taking my words into consideration

  4. Interesting that these two clowns Derek Chauvin & George Floyd worked together for over a decade as Security Officers at a club in Minneapolis, ‘El Nuevo Rodeo Club.’ Can any Smell & Spell A N T I F A ?? How about P R O P A G A N D A ??

  5. “The Supremacists know that if they can frame the Zionist Israel issue about browns (Semitic Palestinians), then most Whites will not care.” – Michael Kingsbury (whom I consider to be one of the voices of what could be termed “the Unofficial West”)

    https://twitter.com/Celtic_Films/status/1258460125905338369

  6. Israel today, is not, the Israel of the Bible (or perhaps in some of the worst ways, it is just as bad, after all,, they did murder/crucify back then, innocent civilians, as well…).
    This article sheds “Light” of Truth, on what, the nation of Israel truly is, today. Were I, still an American ‘Christian’, I would be appalled at the actions, of the State of Israel but, what I would be more appalled at, is my country’s leaders, giving them billions and billions of our tax dollars to support such an utterly corrupt and evil, regime, while we here ‘at home’ are in such trouble ourselves…
    I believe in trying to help our friends and neighbors internationally that are in legitimate need like famine (years back anyways) but, ‘generosity’ has distinct limits… When your own people, are lining up at food banks stretched to their limits, are starving, the national ‘house’ is on fire economically, with even greater issues at hand today, and the nation’s infrastructure is crumbling (because of the corruption and greed), and yet your leaders, are either lining their own pockets with huge tax breaks and perks or, giving away every dollar that is needed and necessary here at home to an utterly low life despicable non democratic fascist government like that of Israel. Then it’s long past time to replace all those leaders here at home, with new leadership, and perhaps if necessary and they refuse to give up power or corrupt our elections, with a new Constitutionally based government bringing in new people with better plans and ideas, from other groups than the two, current, miserably corrupt / treasonous groups (Republican AND Democrat), that brought you, so much misery at home, and brought such misery around the earth.

    Ban the two party’s, vote them out in November, all of them, before our collective house, our country, is burnt to the ground.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here