US Includes Anti-Terror Partner Israel on Terror List

The United States has designated Israel as a country that tends to “promote, produce, or protect terrorists,” while at the same time calling the country an anti-terror partner. The designation is an admission that Israel not only is surrounded by countries and territories that produce terrorists but also unwillingly harbors terrorists within its own territory, CNSNews.com reported.

Also on the list of 36 such countries are the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and Gaza, as well as Israel’s four neighbors of Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General published the list of "specially designated countries" as part of its “Supervision of Aliens Commensurate with Risk” report, CNSNews reported.


“The U.S. does not and never has considered Israel to have links to terrorism, but rather they are a partner in our efforts to combat global terrorism,” Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spokeswoman Gillian Christensen told CNSNews. “Countries may have been included on the list because of the backgrounds of arrestees, not because of the country’s government itself.”

ICE would not say who put Israel on the list or when. However, Christensen said the list was created at least seven years ago, during the presidency of George W. Bush, and that ICE was not responsible for creating it.