The outrage that swept America since the killing of George Floyd has ushered in a necessary conversation about police brutality. Unfortunately, some activists have attempted to hijack this conversation to attack their favorite target: Israel. Specifically, they suggest — including a guest column in the Sun Journal — that Israel bears responsibility for police violence in America.

Such a charge is undermined by even a cursory understanding of U.S.-Israel law enforcement exchanges, which I proudly oversee through my work with the Jewish Institute for the National Security of America.

After 9/11, JINSA was contacted by U.S. law enforcement officials who wanted to learn from Israel’s years of experience fighting terrorism. JINSA’s first delegation arrived in Israel in 2002, as the country faced a campaign of Palestinian suicide bombings and other attacks. Since then, more than 200 senior law enforcement officials have participated in similar trips, while thousands attended conferences with Israeli counterterrorism experts in the U.S.

The exchanges are hosted by the Israel National Police, and allow participants to study post-blast forensics, de-escalation techniques, public venue security, intelligence sharing, and similar subjects. At no time are participants trained in arrest mechanics, use of weapons, or interrogation techniques.

Claims made by Robert Schaible and Larry Gilbert Sr. (Sun Journal, July 26) that the trainings include “aggressive crowd control, hyper-physical restraint and invasive surveillance” tactics are complete fabrications. Likewise, their questioning of whether alleged abuses by a Maine law enforcement organization were possibly “inspired by what our police learned in Israel” is not supported by evidence.

The authors also wrote that the “knee-on-neck technique that killed George Floyd is often used against Palestinians,” in an apparent effort to link Israel to Floyd’s killing. Yet as one fact-checker noted, the now-discouraged “neck kneeling” technique has a long, independent history in American policing. Moreover, Israeli officers are not permitted to use the technique during arrests.

Like many other libels against the Jewish state and people, the campaign to malign and scapegoat U.S.-Israel exchanges is not new. Until Floyd’s death, it was mostly propagated by fiercely anti-Israel organizations and amplified by the antisemitic Iranian regime. Sadly, recent events have created an opportunity for the wider dissemination of its untrue charges, which falsely blame American Jews and Israel for injustices committed in the U.S.

Despite these efforts, JINSA’s exchange program remains robust and sought-after. It has received high praise in the law enforcement community, including from the National Sheriffs’ Association. Multiple participants have attested that their communities have benefitted from what they learned in Israel.

While the coronavirus pandemic forced us to postpone this year’s trip, we will reschedule as soon as possible. This is good news for the American people, whose cities and families are made safer as a result of this program.

Steven Pomerantz, director of the homeland security program, JINSA, Washington, D.C.