Israeli Security Forces
Encyclopedia
Security forces in Israel
include a variety of organizations, including law enforcement
, military
, paramilitary
, governmental
, and intelligence agencies
.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
include a variety of organizations, including law enforcement
Law enforcement agency
In North American English, a law enforcement agency is a government agency responsible for the enforcement of the laws.Outside North America, such organizations are called police services. In North America, some of these services are called police while others have other names In North American...
, military
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
, paramilitary
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
, governmental
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
, and intelligence agencies
Intelligence agency
An intelligence agency is a governmental agency that is devoted to information gathering for purposes of national security and defence. Means of information gathering may include espionage, communication interception, cryptanalysis, cooperation with other institutions, and evaluation of public...
.
Military
- Israel Defense ForcesIsrael Defense ForcesThe Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
: Israel's military forces, comprising the ArmyGOC Army HeadquartersThe Israeli GOC Army headquarters , known unofficially as Mazi, is a multi-corps command headquarters created in 1998, which amalgamates the ground forces of the Israel Defense Forces...
, Air ForceIsraeli Air ForceThe Israeli Air Force is the air force of the State of Israel and the aerial arm of the Israel Defense Forces. It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence...
and Navy.
Police
- Israel PoliceIsrael PoliceThe Israel Police is the civilian police force of Israel. As with most other police forces in the world, its duties include crime fighting, traffic control, maintaining public safety, and counter-terrorism...
: a civilian force. As with most other police forces in the world, its duties include crimeCrimeCrime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
fighting, trafficTrafficTraffic on roads may consist of pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, streetcars and other conveyances, either singly or together, while using the public way for purposes of travel...
control and maintaining publicPublicIn public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individuals, and the public is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the Öffentlichkeit or public sphere. The concept of a public has also been defined in political science,...
safety.
- Border Police (Magav): the military branch (gendarmerieGendarmerieA gendarmerie or gendarmery is a military force charged with police duties among civilian populations. Members of such a force are typically called "gendarmes". The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary describes a gendarme as "a soldier who is employed on police duties" and a "gendarmery, -erie" as...
) of the Israeli Police.
Intelligence
- Shabak (Israel Security Agency) Sherut HaBitahon HaKlali : the organization responsible for internal security, including in the Israeli-occupied territoriesIsraeli-occupied territoriesThe Israeli-occupied territories are the territories which have been designated as occupied territory by the United Nations and other international organizations, governments and others to refer to the territory seized by Israel during the Six-Day War of 1967 from Egypt, Jordan, and Syria...
.
- MossadMossadThe Mossad , short for HaMossad leModi'in uleTafkidim Meyuchadim , is the national intelligence agency of Israel....
(The Institute) HaMosad LeModi'in VLeTafkidim Meyuhadim : the agency responsible for foreign intelligence.
- Aman (Directorate of Military Intelligence) Agaf HaModi'in: Military intelligence, or Aman, produces comprehensive national intelligence estimates for the prime minister and cabinet, daily intelligence reports, risk of war estimates, target studies on nearby countries, and communications intercepts. Aman also conducts across-border agent operations. Aman is an independent service, co-equal with the army, navy and air force. Aman has an estimated staff of 7,000.
Emergency services
- Magen David AdomMagen David AdomThe Magen David Adom is Israel's national emergency medical, disaster, ambulance and blood bank service. The name means "Red Star of David"...
(Red Shield of David): Magen David Adom (MDA) is made up of volunteer and professional medical responders and provides the Israel's pre-hospital emergency medical needs, including disaster, ambulanceAmbulanceAn ambulance is a vehicle for transportation of sick or injured people to, from or between places of treatment for an illness or injury, and in some instances will also provide out of hospital medical care to the patient...
, and blood services.
- Israel Fire and Rescue ServicesIsrael Fire and Rescue ServicesThe Israel Fire and Rescue Services is the Israeli state organization for fire fighting and rescuing. The organisation also provides rescue services from terror attacks, car accident and dangerous substance spillages, along with Magen David Adom, the National EMS. They are also involved in public...
: They are responsible for extinguishing fires and extracting people trapped in structures (ranging from stuck elevators to collapsed buildings).
- Home Front CommandIsraeli Home Front CommandThe Israeli Home Front Command is an Israel Defense Forces regional command, created in February 1992 following the Gulf War, which was the first war since the 1948 Arab-Israeli War in which centres of civilian population faced significant threat....
: part of the IDF. A military rescue team which handles large-scale civilian disasters such as earthquakeEarthquakeAn earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
s, collapsed buildings and missile attacks on cities.
- ZAKAZAKAZAKA , is a series of voluntary community emergency response teams in Israel, each operating in a police district . These organizations are officially recognized by the government...
(Identification and Rescue - True Kindness): ZAKA is a non-governmental volunteer agency responsible for rescue, life saving and recovery. Members work alongside law enforcement and emergency personnel when responding to incidents of terrorism, accidents, or disasters. It is a humanitarian agency, mostly made up of Haredi Jews who assume the duty of collecting human remains to provide those remains a proper Jewish burial, known as Chesed Shel Emet (hebrewHebrew languageHebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
for "true altrusism.") ZAKA is an international organization, with offices in Israel and New York, and has dispatched volunteers to disasters throughout the world. The Israeli government recognizes ZAKA as part of the security apparatus, because volunteers are trained by the Israel Police and Magen David Adom.
- Unit 669Unit 669669 is the Israel Defense Forces heliborne medevac extraction unit, subordinate to the Special Air Forces Command of the Israeli Air Force. It is considered one of the IDF's premier elite units.-History:...
: the Israeli Air ForceIsraeli Air ForceThe Israeli Air Force is the air force of the State of Israel and the aerial arm of the Israel Defense Forces. It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence...
heliborne medevac extraction unit.
- 11 Local Rescue teams in the Golan Heights, GalileeGalileeGalilee , is a large region in northern Israel which overlaps with much of the administrative North District of the country. Traditionally divided into Upper Galilee , Lower Galilee , and Western Galilee , extending from Dan to the north, at the base of Mount Hermon, along Mount Lebanon to the...
-CarmelMount CarmelMount Carmel ; , Kármēlos; , Kurmul or جبل مار إلياس Jabal Mar Elyas 'Mount Saint Elias') is a coastal mountain range in northern Israel stretching from the Mediterranean Sea towards the southeast. Archaeologists have discovered ancient wine and oil presses at various locations on Mt. Carmel...
, Jezreel ValleyJezreel Valley-Etymology:The Jezreel Valley takes its name from the ancient city of Jezreel which was located on a low hill overlooking the southern edge of the valley, though some scholars think that the name of the city originates from the name of the clan which founded it, and whose existence is mentioned in...
, SamariaSamariaSamaria, or the Shomron is a term used for a mountainous region roughly corresponding to the northern part of the West Bank.- Etymology :...
, Ein GediEin GediEin Gedi is an oasis in Israel, located west of the Dead Sea, near Masada and the caves of Qumran.-Etymology:The name En-gedi is composed of two Hebrew words: ein means spring and gdi means goat-kid. En Gedi thus means "Kid spring."...
, MegilotMegilot Regional CouncilMegilot Regional Council , also Megilot Dead Sea Regional Council, is a regional council in the Judean desert near the western shores of the Dead Sea. With only and 1,000 residents, it is Israel's smallest regional council. Its municipal offices are located in Vered Yeriho.-Etymology:The name...
, Gush EtzionGush EtzionGush Etzion is a cluster of Israeli settlements located in the Judaean Mountains directly south of Jerusalem and Bethlehem in the West Bank, Palestinian territories. The core group includes four agricultural villages that were founded in 1940-1947 on property purchased in the 1920s and 1930s, and ...
, Arad, NegevNegevThe Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...
, AravaArabahThe Arabah , also known as Aravah, is a section of the Great Rift Valley running in a north-south orientation between the southern end of the Sea of Galilee down to the Dead Sea and continuing further south where it ends at the Gulf of Aqaba. It includes most of the border between Israel to the...
, and Eilat-Eilot.
Other organizations
- Israel Prison ServiceIsrael Prison ServiceThe Israel Prison Service , commonly known in Israel by its acronym Shabas , is the prison service of Israel. It is responsible for maintaining civilian prisons in Israel, as well as detention centers for security prisoners. It is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Public Security...
: Sherut Batei ha-Sohar: The Israel Prison Service (IPS), sometimes called by its acronym SHABAS, is a security organization which is an integral part of Israel’s system of law enforcement. Its chief roles include the holding of prisoners and detainees under secure and suitable conditions, while preserving their dignity, and meeting their basic needs. The IPS coordinates with relevant national, regional and municipal authorities and organizations. - Knesset GuardKnesset GuardThe Knesset Guard is an Israeli protective security unit.The Knesset Guard is responsible for the security of the Knesset building and protection of Knesset members . Guards are stationed outside the building, and ushers are on duty inside...
: The Knesset has its own guard and usher unit, headed by the Sergeant-at-Arms. The Knesset Guard is in charge of security in the Knesset compound and building. The Serjeant-at-ArmsSerjeant-at-ArmsA Sergeant-at-Arms is an officer appointed by a deliberative body, usually a legislature, to keep order during its meetings. The word sergeant is derived from the Latin serviens, which means "servant"....
("Katzin ha-Knesset") is the commander of the Knesset Guard.
External links
- Israeli Weapons (unofficial website)
- isayeret.com - Israeli Special Forces Database (pay site for non-Israeli visitors)
- Israeli Intelligence Legacy Center (Hebrew)
- Shin Bet (FAS)