Fmr. Israeli PM: Terror Comes Through Radicalized Muslims
The terror attack in Orlando is a too-familiar tragic event, reminiscent of countless others, for one nation that’s been under siege since 1948. Israel’s survival in the Middle East is a daily battle and security is of the utmost importance for the nation surrounded by its enemies.
During an interview with FOX Business Network’s Countdown to the Closing Bell, former Prime Minister of Israel, Ehud Barak, discussed Sunday’s Orlando shooting in the U.S., gun laws and some of the lessons the United States can take from the Israelis when it comes to national security.
Barak said in Israel, the Orlando shooter could have never obtained the assault rifle that killed at least 49 and wounded 53 people at the Pulse nightclub.
“A guy like this wouldn’t be able to get permission to get any gun. And not mention in Israel, no one, including myself, I cannot get more than a simple hand gun. People probably understand American ethos about having weapons, but foreigners cannot understand why the hell you have to equip them with assault rifles,” Barak told host Liz Claman.
Israeli gun laws are relatively strict, banning assault-weapons and requiring gun owners to register ownership with the government. A licensed gun owner in Israel must at be least 21 years old and an Israeli citizen or permanent resident.
Despite the country’s strong gun regulations, Israel recently experienced a violent attack in which two Palestinian gunmen killed four people in a popular Tel Aviv area using handmade guns. Israeli security forces are cracking down on metal shops in the West Bank suspected of manufacturing the handmade weapons known by their street name, “Carlo.”
But, could such measures be taken by terrorist sympathizers in the United States?
Barak said the FBI needs to delineate the balance between the private rights of its citizen and the public safety in a different manner under congressional supervision.
“Israel’s secret services are allowed to profile. They are not looking the same way at a group of a Buddhists living in Israel,” Barak said.
When it comes to facing the reality of terrorism, the former prime minister said ‘you cannot demonize the whole region -- there's no sense in doing it. But there's no sense to ignore reality, that at the present time in 2016, most of terror comes abroad, comes through radicalized Muslims."