Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 4034 AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: NOVEMBER 2016 by Craig W. Floyd S ome 50 members of the Police Unity Tour, plus a few friends, gathered at Newark Airport for a 10-hour flight to Israel. It was the culmination of months of planning by our host, Mike Safris, whose Jewish heritage, law enforce- ment background and love for Israel inspired the trip. Mike worked with Ma- jor General David Bitan, the Southern District com- mander of the Israel Police, to get the trip authorized and planned. Stepping off the plane in Tel Aviv after a 10-hour direct flight, we boarded a bus for a one-hour trip to the Israel National Police Academy, our temporary home during Above: Members of the Police Unity Tour accept a flag signed by Israeli police during NLEOMF’s recent trip to Israel – a country with the only 9/11 Memorial outside the United States to list all the victims of the attacks. Police Unity Tour, NLEOMF go global most of our stay. The current recruit class gathered in a central plaza for a formal ceremony to welcome us. Brief welcoming remarks were given by Brigadier Gen- eral Haim Blumenfeld, the top official at the Academy. The day was a whirlwind tour of the Academy and all it had to offer, includ- ing defense tactics training, precision driving and a visit to the shooting range. The day would end with a very moving visit to Israel’s Na- tional Police Memorial and Museum. I was honored to place a wreath on behalf of our delegation in memory of the 1,445 Israeli police officers who had died in the line of duty dating back to the first death in 1948 when Israel first became a nation. One of the highlights of the Police Museum visit was the quote on the wall as we entered. It was from Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben Gurian. It reads, “The Army is Israel’s security, the police — its honor.” The second day was one of the highlights of the trip – the Police Unity Tour. Led by founder Pat Mon- tuore and Executive Director Harry Phillips, the Police Unity Tour has raised $20 million over the past 20 years with law enforcement officers riding bicycles hundreds of miles in support of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and the officers who made the ultimate sacrifice. In a symbolic show of unity in the global war against ter- The flags of the United States and Israel The flags of the United States and Israel were raised to the sounds of our respective were raised to the sounds of our respective national anthems. national anthems. ror, 50 U.S. law enforcement officers participated in a 25 kilometer bike ride with 50 Israeli officers, including the Deputy Commissioner of the Israel National Police, Zohar Devir. Our group traveled to Masada and the Dead Sea in southern Israel. Masada is the most popular tourist attraction in Israel. It is a mountain that was once home to about 1,000 Jewish rebels. In the year 72 A.D., Roman soldiers were determined to end their revolt and enslave the Jewish rebels. But when the Romans finally were able to climb the mountain and enter Masada, they found that the Jewish rebels had committed a mass suicide. They chose death over slav- ery, and their courageous story of love for freedom, family and religion has in- spired millions of visitors to Masada over the past 2000 years. On Sunday, September 11, we traveled to Jerusalem for a special ceremony commemo- rating the 15th anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attacks in the U.S. Jerusalem is home to the only 9-11 memorial outside of the United States to list all 2,977 victims of the terrorist attacks in New York City, Pennsylvania and the Pentagon. The U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Daniel Shapiro, spoke, as well as several others, in- cluding one of the members of our delegation, retired Perth Amboy Police Officer Ben Salerno, who told the moving story of Richard Rodriguez, one of the 37 Port Authority police officers who died the day of the attacks. After two days of touring the Old City of Jerusalem and the Christian sites in northern Israel, which included Naza- reth, the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan River, we came to the last day of our trip in Tel Aviv. It started with a visit to the Tel Aviv Police District Sta- tion where we were greeted with a moving memorial to the police officers who have died in the line of duty there, followed by a riveting presen- tation by the Tel Aviv District Bomb Squad Commander. We expressed our hope that a delegation of Israeli police could join us for next year’s Police Unity Tour. And, now that the Police Unity Tour has crossed into international territory, there are plans in the works to carry that spirit of unity to other countries around the world. After all, the war on terror is a global war and law enforcement must work together if we are to have a successful outcome. Craig W. Floyd is President and CEO of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and is a regular contribu- tor to AMERICAN POLICE BEAT. Visit www.nleomf.com for more information about law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.