US embassy cable - 05TELAVIV2167

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 002167 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/07/2015 
TAGS: KCRM, PHUM, SMIG, ELAB, PTER, KWMN, EG, IS, ISRAELI SOCIETY, GOI INTERNAL 
SUBJECT: RAMON UNIT BORDER POLICE -- FIGHTING HUMAN 
TRAFFICKING, OTHER SMUGGLING ON EGYPT-ISRAEL BORDER 
 
Classified By: Pol/C Norm Olsen for reasons 1.4(b) & (d). 
 
1.  (C) Summary: The Ramon Unit of the Border Police has 
interdicted weapons, human beings and drugs being smuggled 
across the Egyptian-Israeli border since its establishment in 
March 2003.  Its commander told Poloff that the unit has 
intercepted 36 women being trafficked into Israel in each of 
the past two years.  The chairwoman of the Knesset panel on 
trafficking in persons has credited the unit's pressure on 
smugglers with driving up the cost of smuggling a woman into 
Israel to USD 8,000-10,000 from USD 3,000-5,000.  This cable 
examines the Ramon Unit's structure, objectives and modus 
operandi.  End Summary. 
 
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Ramon Unit History and Structure 
-------------------------------- 
 
2.  (C) The GOI Cabinet established the Ramon Unit of the 
Border Police in March 2003, after the IDF and police 
authorities determined that the Israeli-Egyptian border 
needed better monitoring for smuggling, according to Ramon 
Unit Commander Shalom Peled.  The 208-kilometer border, he 
said, is completely open, and the ease of transporting items 
into Israel makes smuggling a lucrative and attractive 
livelihood, regardless of the cargo.  The Ramon Unit is 
comprised of 300 Border Police officers and 200 IDF soldiers, 
the only such combined unit in Israel.  Peled said that he 
also commands two Border Police units, totaling 200 officers, 
in Gaza and that these two units will be transferred to the 
Egyptian-Israeli border area following Gaza disengagement. 
 
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Trafficking in Women 
-------------------- 
 
3.  (C) The Ramon Unit intercepted 36 women, all presumed 
trafficking victims, as they attempted to enter Israel in 
2004, the same number it intercepted in the first nine months 
of its operations, according to Peled.  (Note:  A GOI report 
on trafficking in persons reported the figure for 2004 as 43. 
 Orly Shmuel, a lawyer with the Ministry of Justice explained 
the discrepancy by saying that seven of these women were 
entering Israel as foreign workers and 36 were caught 
entering as prostitutes and presumed to be trafficked.  End 
Note.)  Ramon Unit spokesperson Ilan Azimi said the unit 
could not estimate how many women cross the Egyptian-Israeli 
border each year, but, according to the Israel Police, the 
total number of women trafficked into Israel for the purpose 
of prostitution in 2004 was 1,500-2,000 and in 2003 was 
2,000-3,000.  The GOI and anti-trafficking NGOs assess that 
most trafficked women are crossing into Israel over the 
Egyptian border.  Peled noted, however, what he said are 
indications that many trafficked women continue to 
successfully enter Israel via the airport and the seaport, 
although he could not offer precise figures.  Peled claimed 
that an increasing number of those successfully entering 
through the airport are disguised as "missionaries,"  but he 
could not offer further details.  Entry through the airport, 
he commented, has become more difficult since the new 
Immigration Authority was created in 2002 to crack down on 
illegal immigrants.  Peled said that the pressure that the 
Immigration Authority has placed on airport entries has had 
the unintended effect of shifting smuggling and trafficking 
to the land border. 
 
4.  (C) Knesset member Za'hava Gal-on, chair of the Knesset 
subcommittee on trafficking in women, told Poloff that the 
Ramon unit has likewise increased difficulties for 
traffickers of women, a phenomenon reflected, she said, in 
the price smugglers charge to transport the women.  The price 
of smuggling a woman across the border a few years ago, she 
said, was USD 3,000-5,000; now the price is USD 8,000-10,000. 
 Representatives of Israel's three main anti-trafficking 
NGOs, asked to comment on the performance of the Ramon Unit, 
reported that they do not interact with the unit and are not 
intimately familiar with its work. 
 
----------------------------------- 
The Ramon Unit: Operational Details 
----------------------------------- 
 
5.  (C) Peled said that the Ramon Unit relies on information 
obtained from intelligence sources, mainly informants.  The 
unit also uses topographical analysis to try to "be one step 
ahead of the smugglers," an effort that has proven successful 
in intercepting smugglers. 
 
6.  (C) Israeli Police Interpol officer Carol Hasidim told 
Poloff that the unit's members patrol the border area via 
helicopter and surface vehicle.  She said that the unit's 
rules of engagement prohibit its members from opening fire 
unless they face a clear security threat. 
 
7.  (C) Peled complained that the Ramon Unit, which depends 
on the police for its budget, is "very poor," and can 
therefore not operate as effectively as it would like.  He 
said that the unit does not have enough resources to "seal" 
the Egyptian-Israeli border, and that it is thus considering 
the advisability of using electronic fences to help detect 
infiltration.  He highlighted, however, that the high cost of 
an electronic fence, approximately USD one million per 
kilometer, dims prospects for the project.  Knesset member 
Za'hava Galon also assessed that the Ramon Unit needs more 
resources. 
 
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Smuggling of Weapons and Drugs 
------------------------------ 
 
8.  (C) Peled said that the smuggling of weapons and drugs, 
especially of marijuana, across the Egyptian border has 
increased in the last several years.  According to Ramon unit 
spokesperson Ilan Azimi, the unit seized 104 AK-47s and seven 
handguns in 2004, as compared to no weapons in 2003.  He said 
the unit interdicted ten tons of marijuana in 2004, as 
compared to 15 tons in 2003.  The unit, he said, also 
interdicted 18 kilos of hashish in 2004, after seizing seven 
kilos of hashish in 2003. 
 
9.  (C) Peled blamed the Bedouin for a lot of the smuggling, 
including what he claimed is the passage of terrorists into 
Israel.  He asserted that the Bedouin do not care what they 
smuggle, but only that they maintain their livelihood. 
 
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