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Israel's newest tourist attraction: the anti-terror training camp

Tourists learn to shoot rifles at Caliber 3 - This content is subject to copyright.
Tourists learn to shoot rifles at Caliber 3 - This content is subject to copyright.

There are many reasons to visit Israel. Depending on your interests, you might go for the key religious sites dotted across Jerusalem and cities such as Nazareth, the Bauhaus buildings of the White City district of Tel Aviv, the sandy beaches and cosmopolitan vibe in the same city – or perhaps the famously salty waters and hotel resorts of the Dead Sea.

And, of course, the chance to fire a high-powered weapon, take part in a staged terror “incident”, and train in mixed martial arts with Israeli combat veterans.

The latter option has become an unusual part of some tourist routes around the Holy Land due to the existence of Caliber 3, which describes itself as “the leading counter terror and security training academy in Israel”.

AFP_QQ3AM - Credit: This content is subject to copyright./MENAHEM KAHANA
Participants learn from Israeli combat veterans Credit: This content is subject to copyright./MENAHEM KAHANA

It was set up in 2003 by Colonel Sharon Gat, a former member of the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), and offers experience packages specifically designed for tourists – as well as “security solutions, high threat protection, intelligence operations and tactical training to military, law enforcement, government agencies and commercial clients around the globe.”

Visitors can sign up for a variety of courses, including a two-hour “Shooting Adventure” where they learn to fire assault rifles and sniper rifles – or a “Survival and Navigation” programme where they spend up to two days “training within harsh conditions… to sharpen your skills”.

Tourists can also learn Krav Marga, the style of martial arts developed by Israeli forces which combines disciplines such as boxing, judo and karate into a fierce form of self-defence.

Clients can also take part in “terror scenarios” in a simulated marketplace where participants keep watch for a potential attacker, and see them disarmed.

However, the complex is not without controversy.

It is located some 15 miles south of Jerusalem in Efrat, an Israeli settlement in the disputed West Bank. Under international law, Israeli settlements in the area are considered illegal, although the Israeli government does not agree with this position.

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Efrat sits in the disputed West Bank Credit: This content is subject to copyright./MENAHEM KAHANA

Caliber 3 has sparked fears among Palestinian communities in neighbouring villages, who have accused it of profiting from the tensions between Israel and Palestine.

In the nearby Palestinian village of Al-Masara – which sits only five miles east of Efrat, but is kept apart from the settlement by Israel’s notorious separation wall – there is concern that the company and its training paints Palestinians in a bad light.

“The settlers who run this company create fear [of Palestinians] among tourists, so they spread it when returning to their countries,” Mohammed Burjieh, a 38-year-old teacher in the village told Agence France-Presse.

Caliber 3 says it is offering a valuable service in difficult times.

AFP_QQ3AX - Credit: This content is subject to copyright./MENAHEM KAHANA
The academy stages simulated "terror incidents" Credit: This content is subject to copyright./MENAHEM KAHANA

“The aim of the training is not to teach you how to shoot, but to make you understand what we do here in Israel to fight terrorism,” says Eitan Cohen a former sniper and member of elite Israeli police units.

“We must protect civilians while keeping our moral values.”

The academy attracts around 25,000 tourists a year, mainly from America, but also from countries like Canada and Venezuela.