Police dismiss racial profiling allegation against civilian security squads

Police appear to dismiss an allegation that some of the civilian security squads that officers are arming and training are using their authority to racially profile and harass Arab Israeli citizens.

Channel 13 publishes footage of an Arab Israeli man, who says he was detained for 10 minutes by one of the squads who spotted him walking on his own last night in Tel Aviv.

A crowd began to gather, angrily urging the civilian security squad to release the man. As tensions flared, the Arab man urged onlookers to calm down, lifted his shirt to show that he did not have any weapons and even defended the conduct of the security squad, which eventually released him.

In a statement responding to the incident, the Israel Police claimed the security squads are made up of citizens from all sectors of society who are volunteering to support the broader community.

Police say that the security squads operate within the Israel Police command “in an orderly and organized manner, have been trained and authorized for the defined task.”

“Any attempt to color their activity in a different shade is a wrong and harms the unity of the people and the spirit of volunteering,” police say, calling on the public to join the security squads.

חברי כיתת הכוננות של ת״א עיכבו הערב בשוק הכרמל אזרח ערבי שפשוט הלך לבדו ברגל ליד מסעדת בסטה. לפי עדי ראיה חברי כיתת הכוננות עיכבו אותו למשך עשר דקות ודרשו ממנו להראות להם תעודת זהות. בשלב מסוים, התקבצו עדי ראיה נוספים וביקשו מהמתנדבים לשחרר אותו, ואז ״החשוד״ הרים את החולצה ודווקא… pic.twitter.com/k33FrQCCJ8

— בר שם-אור Bar Shem-Ur (@Bar_ShemUr) November 10, 2023