The Israel Police held a special ceremony at a police academy in Beit Shemesh Sunday to welcome the 52 United States police officers who arrived in Israel as part of a joint delegation titled 'Police Unity Tour.'
Police officers from both countries stood at attention as The Star Spangled Banner was played, followed by Hatikva. A high ranking Israeli Police officer told the visitors that "we have the utmost respect for you, and we will do everything to make you feel at home."
The visiting law enforcement officials will tour Israel and learn policing techniques from their Israeli counterparts, in addition to participating in a special ceremony commemorating the 9/11 terror attacks alongside representatives from the US Embassy in Tel Aviv.
"They are visiting different police units, including the police academy and units in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem," Police Spokesperson Micky Rosenfeld told Arutz Sheva. "Every day they will see different police units, and then there will be the buildup for the 9/11 ceremony which they are taking part in."
United States law enforcement often come to Israel to learn from the country's preeminence in counter-terrorism, drawing fire from radical left-wing activists who claim that Israel teaches United States Police to brutalize demonstrators.
In 2016, Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed flatly refused the demand from the anti-police Black Lives Matter group that Atlanta police cease training with their Israeli counterparts, telling reporters that " I happen to believe that the Israeli police department has some of the best counter-terrorism techniques in the world, and it benefits our police department from that longstanding relationship."