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Controversy erupted after photos were published showing a man pointing a gun at the image of a person wearing what appeared to be a traditional Arab headdress.
Panamanian police forces have apologized for participating in a training course hosted by Israel after footage showed officers firing at targets that appeared to represent people dressed in traditional Arab clothing.
Controversy erupted after photos emerged of the formation, one of which showed a man pointing a gun at the image of an armed person wearing what appeared to be a traditional headdress.
The images were posted on Twitter by the National Police and the local Israeli Chamber of Commerce, but were later deleted.
“We respect cultural, religious and ethnic differences,” police said in a statement on Friday. “We regret that a situation has arisen outside the nature of our mission and our duty.”
The deleted messages on Twitter indicated that the training was being organized by the Israeli Embassy in Panama.
The Palestinian Information Office in Panama also condemned the training.
“Target marksmanship training codes of conduct only accept silhouettes without images… [this] is an act of discrimination and racism that Panama should not tolerate, ”the office said in a statement, local media reported.
#Exit | We regret that during an act in which as an institution we participated as guests, a situation outside the nature of our mission and our duty as the primary security institution has arisen. pic.twitter.com/h2MebZOLR7
– National Police (@ProtegeryServir) October 2, 2021
Translation: We regret that during an act in which we participated as guests as an institution, a situation outside the nature of our mission and our duty as the primary security institution arose. produced.
The controversy sparked criticism from the Panamanian Committee for Solidarity with Palestine, which said the course promotes “violence and racism so that anyone wearing a hijab or something similar can be classified as a terrorist.”
The committee also called on the government to cancel the “intervention” of foreign countries in the training of security forces.
“This training constitutes a violation of the protocols relating to the shooting courses which prohibit the use of distinctive figures of the Arab peoples as objects of hatred and persecution,” the statement said.
“We call on the national government to cancel the intervention of Israel and other countries … in our security forces,” he added.
The training also drew condemnation on social media.
What a shame @ProtegeryServe are trained by the Israeli Embassy @IsraelinPanama to shoot at target using the image of a person with a Kufiya @copasolpa @ TodayPalestina @CancilleriaPma @CoplacOficial https://t.co/EG7j1ivYQN pic.twitter.com/zxcimhMVDl
– Pedro Silva Underdog☭🇵🇦 (@ PedroUnderdog09) October 1, 2021
Translation: What a shame [the police forces] are trained by the Israeli Embassy to shoot at target using the image of a person with a Kufiya
What does the Panamanian police gain by putting a photo of a Palestinian woman as a symbol of terrorism? pic.twitter.com/6si1Vg3Khg
– Rubén Murgas (@RubenMurgas) October 1, 2021
Translation: What does the Panamanian police gain by putting a photo of a Palestinian woman as a symbol of terrorism?
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