Panama police apologize for hijab stigmatization

AFP – The  National Police of Panama apologized on Friday for the participation of some agents in a training run by Israelis, where they target images of people who appear to be wearing Arab clothing.

“We are respectful of cultural, religious, and ethnic differences. We regret that during an act in which as an institution we participated as guests, a situation outside the nature of our mission and duty arose, ”said the Panamanian police.

“We wish to present our apologies to those who have felt affected,” added the institution.

The controversy occurred after the Twitter accounts of the National Police and the Panamanian Israeli Chamber of Commerce published photos of an apparent police training, which were later deleted.

In one of the images, a man appears pointing a gun at a photograph where an armed person is seen wearing what appears to be a kufiyya (Arab headscarf) or a hijab (Muslim woman’s veil that covers the head and shoulders ) and a firearm.

“With the aim of strengthening relations between Israel and Panama, our units of the Diplomatic Headquarters Police service were trained in different shooting techniques by instructors from the Israeli Embassy in Panama,” said the publication that the National Police later removed from Twitter

These events are “clearly a stigmatization” that promotes “violence and racism so that anyone who wears a hijab or something similar can be classified as a terrorist,” the Panamanian Committee for Solidarity with Palestine said in a note.