The group of assassins VS the nuclear bombing group in Iran

Article author: Miky Weinberg – Owner of the Tarantula Technologies Ltd and Octagon Security Ltd Companies.

Note: The details in the article on the assassination of the nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh (the assassination in Iran), are taken from the media publications only and therefore some may be correct and some may be inaccurate.

Good evening dear viewers from your professional and experienced commentators, Miky Weinberg and Yair Oanunu. It turns out that even after many years of coverage and interpretation of events, one can still get excited about a new event and that is what happens to us on this special and unusual evening.

Finally, after waiting patiently for a long time, the battle between the assassins and the Iranian nuclear bomb group taking place in the resort town of Absard near Tehran is about to begin and we are here to intensify the experience for you.

The atmosphere in this amazing and impressive hall is electrifying and all thanks to you dear viewers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The signs and allusions to the approaching of this fateful and important battle have been given and published recently in succession:

The Prime Minister of Israel, Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu, mentioned the name of nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh when he presented to the world the documents that the Mossad managed to take from the Iranians under their noses – there is no doubt that a clear message was sent to the Iranian nuclear bomb group.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

US President Donald Trump joined the challenge against the Iranian armament and he too marked the nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh as a target and thus awakened the Iranian nuclear bomb group from its slumber.

We have no doubt that Donald Trump, along with Benjamin Netanyahu, managed to upset the fans of the Iranian nuclear bomb group.

 

Iranian fans took to the streets en masse and demanded that the Iranian nuclear bomb group hold the battle as soon as possible and even stepped up to do so when they burned the flags of Israel and the United States. We are sure that a lot of Iranian fans will come to watch and cheer on their team in the hope that this time they will win.

 

 

 

 


The whole world waited patiently for the official announcement of the battle between the two teams, and to our great joy it came in a big way:

 

 

Both teams know that this time too it will be a battle that will determine who will die and who will live. Who will come out on top?

Will the assassins win again this time or will the Iranian nuclear bomb group finally succeed in doing so?

Which team, dear spectators, will win the championship belt for 2020 at the end of the fight?

 

 

 

There is no doubt that the Iranian nuclear bomb group has a big and difficult challenge in defending the life of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh.
If we recall their previous loss in which Qassem Suleimani paid with his life, they must not make the same mistakes.

What are the common mistakes that the Iranian nuclear bomb group makes over and over again when conducting close protection operations:

  • Use of the same vehicles helps the opponent to mark the principal’s vehicle and easily identify it during the battle.
  • Inadequacy of early response capabilities and operational functioning during the realization of a physical assault threat – the security guards who do not have the ability to fight against an aggressive opponent prevent the response from being rapid.
  • Repeated movement patterns, traveling on the same axes allows the opponent to know exactly where the principal’s convoy will go and thus plan ahead and place a deadly ambush.
  • Failure to observe basic security principles with the principal, for example, letting the principal drive the vehicle.
  • Failure to combine appropriate weapons to respond to an attack by an aggressive opponent.
  • Passive security, security that waits for the opponent’s action without performing active security actions. This includes a failure to send an advance team to scan the fixed travel route for the purpose of detecting anomalies.
  • A method of security and operational work without planning from the eyes of the attacker and without the use of tactical deception and breaking the routine.
  • Lack of production and use of tactical intelligence, threat assessment, and analysis of reports for each threat and each planned characteristic activity.
  • Lack of adjustment of the levels of physical and technological protection, packaging and operational sampling, and operational transportation vehicles for assessing the potential threat by the opponent to the secured object/protectee.
  • The force’s composition (forces and missions) does not match the requirements of conducting security operations during a threatened principal’s movement at such a level, including personnel and mission vehicles (close, escort, advances, observers, EOD, etc.).
  • Mismatch of the profile of the security personnel and their operational competence to the characteristics of the mission dedicated to protecting a threatened principal.

In contrast, the assassins always manage to surprise again thanks to the level of professionalism and quality of execution of its members and thanks to their high ability to gather intelligence before a battle. The assassins invest a lot of effort and time in the phase of learning about the opponent and preparing the plan of action from the mindset of the attacker. As it seems, even in this battle the assassins are supposed to win, but it is perhaps precisely because of this that the Iranian nuclear bomb group will be able to surprise and transfer the 2020 victory belt to its closet.

Dear viewers, the last press conference before the start of the fight is about to begin.

We see from our broadcasting position that the President of the United States himself is coming to the podium and the spokesman for the Iranian nuclear bomb group is approaching his position.

As usual, Donald Trump is full of confidence and gives a performance with the 2019 championship belt hanging on his left shoulder. On the other hand, the Iranian speaker waves at him in what looks like a snake. Can’t believe it, could it be that the Iranian speaker brought a snake to the press conference? There is no end to the creativity of these two veteran rivals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What excitement, what atmosphere, what tension. In a few minutes, the battle will begin. The arena is ready. The roars of excitement and encouragement of your dear viewers are heard very loudly. Due to the limitations of the coronavirus, the audience is watching an online battle so to hear it one has to click on the left audio-video and increase the volume of the speakers.

 

The group of assassins enters the battlefield first and rushes to place a hidden camera, a car bomb, and what looks like a sniper weapon disguised in the back of a pickup truck. We do not know the exact plan of the assassins but there is no doubt that it is going to be surprising and deadly.

We manage to see the Iranian nuclear bomb group advancing towards the battlefield. The group chose to arrive in a convoy of three vehicles with nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh driving in a Nissan mid-size vehicle. Wait, could it be that the group has again chosen to use the same axis?

Could it be that we see the nuclear scientist driving himself in the ministry vehicle with his wife sitting next to him? Could it be that they have not sent a preliminary advance team again to check whether the opponent’s team is preparing a surprise for them?

To our sorrow or rather to the sorrow of the large Iranian crowd that came tonight to see his team win, it seems that the answer to all our questions is… Yes !!! Once again the Iranian nuclear bomb group is repeating past mistakes that caused it to lose and big time. Maybe we are wrong, maybe we do not see right, maybe they will still surprise.

The convoy of nuclear scientists begins to enter the battlefield as the assassins are seen waiting patiently. Who will attack first? The tension in the arena tears the air.

The assassins identify with the help of the hidden camera the familiar Nissan vehicle and the face of the nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh – the target is identified!!! The assassins rush to activate the exploding vehicle, a huge explosion is heard that blows the parts of the vehicle over a large distance and more importantly manages to get the convoy of the nuclear bomb group to stop on the spot. Again the surprise came from the group of assassins. Will the nuclear bomb group be able to respond? Or we again watch a battle that ends in a knockout?

Security guards from the rear escort vehicle try to get out and respond but before they can move, each of the four takes a deadly bullet that kills him on the spot.

The group of assassins is in full swing and it does not appear that they intend to reduce the intensity of the attack until the nuclear scientist is abducted and dies. Firing sounds are heard from the direction of the van, but where is the shooter? Unbelievably, the group of assassins is firing remotely at the sniper rifle. Once again they surprise and justify being world champions.

The special sniper rifle bullets penetrate the front armored glass of the Nissan vehicle on their way to the exposed body of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh.

Mohsen appears to have been fatally wounded and the group of assassins understands this well. The group’s members are quick to hide from the battlefield all the evidence that can attest to their all-too-successful method of operation.

The convoy of the Iranian nuclear bomb group remains in place with the nuclear scientist and the killed security guards each sitting in their place. Again the team lost. Again the team failed to face the world champion and again the one who paid the price for the loss is the secured principal.

We and the audience from all over the world and especially the Iranian audience look at the battle scene and see the story of the battle through the marks it left (Warning: the video on the left includes unpleasant content):

In the photo: the remains of the exploding vehicle that flew in all directions and at a great distance from the battlefield, which indicates the size of the explosive device that was activated remotely.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The armored Nissan vehicle – the bullets hit the front window and the small window on the left side and blood marks on the road.

 

 

 

 


As usual, as we do for you immediately after each fight, we have summarized the bulk of the fight into a concluding video:


Just before we conclude the battle and close the broadcast, we received special documentation of the battle in the simulation – only for your eyes dear viewers:

 

 

The world media is quick to report on the death of nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh and publishes a picture of him against the backdrop of the Iranian flag.

 

 

 

 

 

The Iranian leader warns the United States and Israel in heavy revenge for the additional victory he and his country suffered.

 

 

 

 

 

Our dear viewers, we have reached the end of the special broadcast. We watched a battle in which only one group remembered that security must be maintained and by deception you will make war.

The world championship remains in the hands of the assassins’ group and they come out of here with the championship belt for 2020.

A big victory picture of the commander of the winning team with the championship belt has been published right now in all the global media?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Until our next coverage, we, Miky Weinberg and Yair Oanunu are glad you were here with us and wish you a continued safe, and secure evening.

Remember that security must be maintained.

Attempted assassination of President Trump or just an innocent vehicle – the reaction of the security array

Article author: Miky Weinberg – Owner of the Tarantula Technologies Ltd and Octagon Security Ltd Companies.

US President Donald Trump visited Springfield when during his ride in the long, massive and secure presidential convoy a vehicle burst to the left of the convoy, and here (referring to the direction of travel) a white private vehicle eventually stopped on the side parallel to the presidential vehicle.

the event was filmed:

Photography from another angle:

In close protection, securing the principal during vehicular movements is considered on the one hand difficult and challenging and on the other hand, there are numerous options in response to the possible threats. One of the threats is an adversary operating with the help of a vehicle that allows him to collide with the principal’s vehicle as a fatal accident (this has happened before), collide and operate the vehicle as a car bomb (this has happened before), block the principal’s vehicle and start shooting (this has happened before) and more.

The incident in question illustrates the adversary’s ability to succeed and surprise because it may be considered the least logical and predictable because of the ditch located on the side of the road and perhaps because of the wooded area adjacent to it, and indeed it can be seen that no security forces are stationed on this side of the road.

At the end of the event it turned out that he was a completely innocent person who happened to be where he was when the presidential convoy passed, but can this be assumed to be the reason for the visible action in real-time, while the incident is taking place? Can the security personnel in the convoy act in what appears to be indifference just because the vehicle stopped and did not continue to gallop on its way to the President’s vehicle? Of course not.

The rule in security states that in identifying an exceptional event, the security system must act quickly and decisively in order to be able to classify it correctly, choose the right actions, and all this within the framework of securing the president. In my opinion, the reaction of the President’s protection team is very worrying because of the slowness and indifference that is clearly visible from the moment the event begins and also because of the professional mistakes related to securing a person in a vehicular convoy.

The following images illustrate the security response issues:

Photo 1:

The moment the vehicle appears in coordination to the left of the convoy. Note that at this point the vehicle is parallel to the president’s possible location in the convoy. This is the moment when the security array is required to first identify and classify the incident.

Event classification at this point – vehicle bursting in from the left.

This is an incident that is defined as very unusual that requires a quick and determined response from the security array.


Photo 2:

The security vehicle that goes to handle the incident – at this stage the force whose job it is to act against threats of this kind, is required to act quickly and resolutely until a complete and correct appraisal of the situation is complete and the threat neutralized according to the threat and legal powers that are available to the security team. The problem is that from what is seen in the video and image, the behavior of the responding force is far from professional when it comes to close protection.

The required response: Arrival with a security vehicle, stopping at a tactical distance and in a place that prevents the vehicle from continuing to travel, unloading security personnel from the vehicle with weapons drawn and alert and fearful of the possibility of an exploding vehicle and an adversary who can escape, shoot or himself explode.

The behavior of the security team is reminiscent of a traffic cop arresting a citizen for a traffic offense and not the security team of the President of the United States facing a vehicle that appears to be bursting towards the convoy.

Let’s watch the video in slow motion and conclude:

 

The incident once again illustrates how the potential adversary is surprising in arriving, approaching the object of security, and ultimately in the action, he has chosen to take against him. The incident shows how a security array must not act against a potential threat and once again emphasizes the fact that today almost every incident is filmed by the media or by citizens and shortly after its occurrence it already appears on social media.

In vehicular close protection, there are a number of responses against existing threats such as armored vehicles, identical vehicles in the convoy, changing the principal’s position in the convoy, and security vehicles for concealment and providing a quick response against any threat. The vehicle that first responded to the incident has to continue handling the bursting vehicle and not continue driving and send another vehicle a long time afterward.

In the above case, it is a small private vehicle that probably would not really have been able to reach the Presidential vehicle, but what would have happened if it had been a larger vehicle that would have crossed the ditch without any problem and managed to accelerate in a very short time towards the Presidential vehicle?

Such a vehicle for example:

In vehicular security, as long as the traffic lane is open and not blocked, the best response is to continue a fast forward ride with the principal’s vehicle.

I wish for the President of the United States that all the anomalous events around him have turned out to be innocent and especially that his security array will respond more quickly and decisively than the level of response demonstrated in the event in question.

Another example of a weak response from a close protection system:

During the security of the President of Morocco in a vehicular movement, a man burst towards the convoy and reached as far as the President’s vehicle without any of the security personnel interrupting him. Here, too, the security system does not appear to have responded as required in such situations – rescue in fast-moving driving forward. What is certain is that the best reaction is to stop the principal’s vehicle!

the event’s video:

 

Remember that security must be maintained quickly and resolutely against all threats until they are neutralized and finally classified.

 

 

 

The importance of the deterrent defensive security ring in the facility’s security preparations

Article author: Miky Weinberg – Owner of the Tarantula Technologies Ltd and Octagon Security Ltd Companies.

Having seen and visited dozens of secure facilities at varying levels, I can unequivocally determine that most of them do not have a deterrent towards the adversary and in those that already exist then it seems completely coincidental and does not really achieve its goal.

Anyone who knows and has heard me already knows my opinion that says that a security system that finds itself facing the adversary and is forced to act with force or with weapons, is a security system at a point of severe failure that is now required to minimize damage. The security system failed because it failed to prevent the adversary from reaching the area of the facility and start acting to implement his plan and plot.

Why would a security system fail in the prevention phase?

There can be several reasons for this, the main one of which deals with the external and internal deterrent rings in the facility. A facility without a deterrent security ring invites the potential adversary to it because the latter is not challenged, not afraid, and feels that the target is easy to penetrate and attack.

The adversary does not feel fear beyond the basic fear and therefore does not show suspicious signs in his behavior.

Any security plan for a facility designed and written without thinking and analyzing from the attacker’s perspective will probably be without a deterrent ring at all or with an imperceptible and ineffective deterrent ring. To truly understand the importance of the deterrent ring in a facility, one must first know that an adversary is a person whose main difference between him and most human beings is that he has decided to perform an action that is defined as negative and illegal and contrary to social behavioral norms.

This fact is the biggest advantage of any security system and it is the one that provides an opportunity to make the adversary decide not to act at all or to succeed and identify him before committing the act of assault, whether it is a criminal or terroristic.

A professional deterrent will succeed in keeping the novice adversary away from the facility, the one who has not yet gained enough experience and courage to perform a negative action. A professional deterrent circle will also manage to keep away from the facility a certain portion of the professional and skilled adversaries, the same adversary who is better able to overcome with a sense of fear and therefore these adversaries will display suspicious indicators that are more difficult to identify.

The main working assumption in creating a circle of deterrence says that no person in a state of fear and tension will not display suspicious indicators in their behaviors. Hence anything that includes a deterrent ring should cause the potential adversary to feel fear and tension which will translate into displaying suspicious behavioral indicators. Once that happens, some of the adversaries will just go and look for another place and those who still decide to stay will display suspicious behavioral indicators even if they try to avoid doing so.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The deterrent circle includes several elements that are all aimed directly at the adversary:

Advertising on a website – an installation of an organization that operates a website, should advertise the existence of a 24/7 security system and even state that it includes security guards and advanced technological means. In addition, it is advisable to give some examples of apprehending adversaries in the facility and punishing them severely. All of this in order to convey to the adversary a clear and sharp message that he will think well before deciding to come and attack the facility.

Perimeter Lighting – Placing permanent external perimeter lighting for the facility and lighting that is turned on by motion detection. Proper and good lighting will make the adversary feel uncomfortable and think he may be seen.

Warning signs – Placing warning signs that indicate that the facility is secure 24/7 can be mistaken as nonsensical, but in reality, they manage to increase the adversary’s sense of fear and tension.

Funneling of vehicles and pedestrians – Funnelling vehicles and pedestrians on a pre-planned route that will bring them to the parking lot and/or the main entrance to the facility only will make it difficult for the adversary to walk around the facility trying to find uncontrolled openings. Such funneling will create in the adversary a feeling that the security system is in good hands and again will cause him an increase in the feeling of fear and tension.

Cameras – Placing real cameras and dummy cameras outside the facility will make the adversary think that it is possible for the cameras to take pictures and see him at any given moment.

Security vehicle – placing a dedicated security vehicle or other vehicles to which the symbols of a security vehicle are added in a prominent place that is visible.

Physical security force – placing security guards and inspectors in the external sector and at the entrance to the facility, with an emphasis on the entry route for vehicles and people. Emphasis on the visibility of the security guards and inspectors.

Active security system – conducting unconventional outdoor patrols and questioning people in the vicinity of the facility.

The deterrent ring also excels in the positive balance between the relatively low cost of its creation and the added value it produces to the overall security system in its confrontation with the adversary.

Any security manager that works to implement my recommendations will significantly improve the response against the adversary, and who does not want to reach such a situation?

I can point out here that a number of facilities that have accepted my recommendations on the subject and fully implemented them have had an improvement in their sense of security and the effectiveness of their security system.

Remember that security is maintained first of all by creating a professional and effective deterrent!

A fatal shooting at a bar in California proves that just one security guard at the entrance is not enough

Article author: Miky Weinberg – Owner of the Tarantula Technologies Ltd and Octagon Security Ltd Companies.

On November 8, 2018, a former Marine arrived at a dance bar in California and shot 12 innocent civilians after shooting and killed the security guard stationed at the entrance to the bar. This is a skilled Marine with post-trauma from his military service who seems to have managed to surprise the security guard at the entrance and shoot him without difficulty and without resistance. After neutralizing the security guard, there was nothing and who would stand in his way and prevent him from carrying out the shocking killing spree in which people who just wanted to enjoy themselves were killed.

While this is not the first incident where an armed civilian or terrorist enters a scene with a crowd and shoots people but I think the fact that the first shooting was carried out to neutralize the security guard is one that requires analysis and professional thinking on what can and should be done differently.

The event reiterates some familiar principles in security:

  1. There is a good chance that a security guard at the entrance will deter some of the adversaries from trying and carrying out their plot in the secure facility.
  2. There is a very high probability that the security guard in the first defensive security ring will meet the adversary first.
  3. There is a very high probability that the adversary will succeed in surprising the security guard.

In most cases, the security level of one security guard will not suffice as an effective response to reports.

Most citizens will choose to flee rather than resist.

It is most difficult for the various security forces to deal with one adversary who decides to leave his home in order to murder innocent people in a leisurely place.

One adversary who acts alone and on his own will usually not float in the intelligence ring and if he does not make mistakes on the way to the target, will be discovered for the first time at the entrance to the facility or immediately after starting the assault.

This is a confrontation against the potential adversary at the highest level of difficulty and still, there is an obligation to take all known and possible actions in order to try to identify him as early as possible and prevent him from carrying out his malicious plan.

I believe the former Marine came as far as the entrance or entrance area to the bar without revealing the weapons in his possession so it was difficult for the security guard to identify that he was a threat. A threat with combat skill and determination like a Marine has combined with post-trauma issues, will not leave much chance for a security guard who is supposed to prevent him from entering and doing his thing in a bar.

The above event and similar ones send a clear message that securing a place that accommodates a large number of people who are a preferred target for an adversary looking for crowd concentration can’t start and end their security preparations only by placing a security guard at the entrance. In order to elevate the level of security a security array that integrates physical security, tactical obstacles, utilizing employees, instructing the crowd, and preparing the installation for emergencies. Beyond the routine activities of the place, it is obligatory to constantly think about the possibility of an emergency event and therefore the owner of the place must invest resources to create maximum readiness to deal with the potential adversary.

Preparation of the facility:

  1. Use of ambient lighting with an emphasis on the entrance and exit areas.
  2. Public direction signs for emergency exits and security rooms.
  3. An explanatory sign that explains what to do in an emergency.
  4. Keeping escape routes free of interference.
  5. The integrity of emergency doors.
  6. PA system.
  7. Ability to call emergency forces with a quick push of a button.
  8. Employee training for emergencies.
  9. Aim for at least 2 armed workers to be present, one of whom can be a security guard if one exists in the facility.
  10. Have a first aid kit and at least one employee who has been trained in primary care.

Entrance to the building:

The adversary will search and locate the opening through which it will be easiest for him to enter the facility. The adversary will prefer to enter a key facility that seems to him unsecured so as not to go through a security guard (s). In search of his preferred entrance, the adversary will observe the facility to understand whether the place is secure and will usually first examine the main entrance and therefore what he sees at the main entrance will influence his decision whether to look for another opening or another place.

A business like a club must create a situation where the main entrance to it seems secure and such that every person who comes to it understands that he has to go through an identification and inspection process. It follows that entry, including the security guard, must produce outward deterrence in order to succeed and keep a certain percentage away from potential quarrels and remain “only” with the brave adversaries. Only broad security thinking that will create a security system that includes a number of rings and emergency preparedness will increase the chances of success in facing the adversary who decides to try to enter the place in spite of everything. For this purpose, it is required to place more than one security guard at the entrance, similar to nightclub security guards in Israel:

The design of the entrance to the building should be in such a way as to combine placing a security guard at the front and placing physical obstacles on the way inside.

The entrance door to the building can be an obstacle and even one that cannot be passed without the use of burglary, so it is necessary to place strong and massive doors in the entrance and exit openings that will generally be closed and locked. The door will be opened solely by the security guard and will not be allowed without his intervention in order to prevent an outbreak or entry of a hazard after he has managed to overcome the security guard just as happened at a bar in California.

In my opinion, the entrance to crowded businesses and especially large clubs and restaurants should be built like an embassy entrance and include 2 doors that create a security room that produces a gradual and full control entry process or an initial corridor that will direct the entrants inside.

It is recommended to install in the security guard’s position at the entrance a device such as a distress button that will allow a message to be sent in an emergency.

Business owners who have a relatively large audience concentration must understand that they must also think about the dangers that exist from the outside, be sure to implement all relevant violent security procedures, and implement them in a full and professional manner to meet customer responsibilities and to place an effective counterattack.

The period of time from the moment the adversary begins to act until the security forces arrive at the scene of the incident is the responsibility of the owners of the place and it will determine what the consequences of the attack will be.

The amount of forces that are sent to the bar to deal with the attacker indicates how difficult and complex this task is:

Unfortunately, it seems that in most cases, the counter-actions of the business itself will not succeed in preventing the adversary who is determined to act but may also succeed in disrupting the full realization of the adversary’s intentions and thus minimizing damages.

In Israel, the Israel Police guides businesses with crowd concentrations to carry out physical and technological security operations, and even if we do not receive a clear indication that they are effective and they are sure to keep out certain adversaries who are increasingly looking for easier attack targets.

Remember, security must be maintained even in private businesses.

Close protection – Attempted assassination of a Brazilian presidential candidate

Article author: Miky Weinberg – Owner of the Tarantula Technologies Ltd and Octagon Security Ltd Companies.

Jair Bolsonaro is running for president of Brazil and as it appears at the election rallies he is holding, he has a great many supporters who even carry him on their shoulders with great pride.

As is well known, insecurity in general and close protection in particular, the threat can only come from one adversary who dares to try and hurt the principal while being absorbed in the large crowd of supporters and exploiting the density and noise in favor of approaching the target and performing the attack quickly and resolutely.

Three weeks ago, during a large outdoor rally, with Bolsonaro the presidential candidate being carried on the shoulders of one of his ardent supporters, an assassin suddenly emerged from the front who needed only one second to stab Bolsonaro with a knife. One stab that could have ended Bolsonaro’s life and his campaign.

The incident and the stabbing were recorded on cameras and published on the various media channels, thus allowing us to watch again what a threat in the security of principals and its realization by the adversary looks like:

Closer photo and in slow motion:

In an event, it is possible to understand how the chosen action of the adversary in which he uses the knife as a means of harming the principal during an open event, without examination and screening of the audience, is difficult to identify in advance, requires the adversary to reach the principal, requires a short and simple action with one hand and can be extremely lethal.

There is a very great difficulty in detecting an injury with a knife because you do not hear noise and it is almost impossible to detect the act of stabbing and sometimes even the stab yourself. The only sign that something has happened is the behavior of the person being stabbed.

I do not know what is the policy of the close protection unit in Brazil regarding the level of security around presidential candidates, but it is clear that this event strengthens all units in the world that secure candidates during the election campaign to prevent and thwart any damage to democracy.

Candidate Bolsonaro did not appear to be close to the incident because no guards or personal close protection specialists were identified around him and in addition, he did not appear to be wearing a protective vest. I do not know the reasons for this situation and despite this, I say with full confidence that he is placing the candidate at the highest level of danger in front of the potential adversary. It is possible that the candidate himself decided to give up security and the protective vest for his own reasons and thus condemned himself to be exposed to the existing threats. The situation is reminiscent of the late Rehavam Zeevi’s opposition to security and the price he, his family and we paid for it – the late Rehavam Zeevi was murdered in the Hyatt Hotel in Jerusalem while staying without close protection specialists created as a result of his unwillingness to be provided with security.

Even if the candidate Bolsonaro was closely secured, the task of defending him in the event against the existing threats in such a situation was still very difficult. Event characteristics of this type, emphasize the assumption of working in close protection that the lowest level of security should be carried out by two close protection specialists.

Pictures of the candidate carried on the shoulders of one of the supporters with the rest of the crowd crowded around and you can see a man with sunglasses who seems to have a police badge on his shirt:

A close protection specialist by him or herself will not be able to give a full response to the threats and therefore will most likely not be able to identify the adversary approaching the principal and will not be able to prevent the stabbing from taking place in front. Adding a pair of close protection specialists who will go to the front will significantly increase the response against personal injury, although the task will still require the close protection specialists to work with full concentration and great professionalism.

As stated, when the principal participates in a mass event with no security at all, there is nothing that will prevent the adversary from carrying out his or her plot.

The moment of the stab:

The candidate’s evacuation actions by the audience:

Luckily for candidate Bolsonaro, the stabbing hit an area that did not cause death and aided in his quick evacuation to the hospital and the treatment he received, his life was saved and he recovered and returned to the campaign:

In close protection, the principal can oppose security and take actions that will make it difficult for the security unit responsible for his security but he must know that in such decisions he puts himself in danger of injury and even life-threatening events.

Remember that security must be maintained even when it is inconvenient and does not always serve the interests of the principal

“Attempted assassination” of the Venezuelan president during an open event

Article author: Miky Weinberg – Owner of the Tarantula Technologies Ltd and Octagon Security Ltd Companies.

The president of Venezuela and his aides claim that an assassination attempt was made against him with the help of 7 drones during his participation in an open event. Other officials in the country claim that the explosion heard during the president’s speech were caused by a gas cylinder in an apartment located in a building near the scene.

As usual, I searched for long hours on the internet for videos and/or pictures that could testify to what happened in the event in question and I found no hint that it was a drone attack except for the fact that as soon as I heard the noise the president and those around him looked up. The truth is that I was a little disappointed with the result because I am of the opinion that it is not far off today that an adversary will choose to try to assassinate a principal with the help of a drone.

Although no sign of drones was seen at the event, one can still learn from it about the reaction of the people to the explosion during the event, the reaction of the security system of the President of Venezuela, and the reaction of the crowd that included mainly soldiers.

Event documentation:

Personal response:

The event proves once again how much the security system can understand from the behavior of people that something is happening where the VIP is at. The reaction of the president, his wife, and the officers around him can indicate some kind of explosion that took place upwards because everyone instinctively looked at the sky and did not seem to be looking for where the noise came from (their response is somewhat inconsistent with the fact that there are no signs of drones in the sector). The behavior of the principal and all the other people on stage gives the security system a sign that something is happening and therefore even if they still do not understand what it is, they have a duty to approach the principal and protect him or her physically until deciding whether to evacuate him from the incident. There is a concept in security, which I do not know if it still exists, of an unknown incident which means that an emergency occurs that is not in the sector close to the object of security but in the more distant circles and can affect its security and therefore requires reference by the security system. The sharp-eyed will be able to spot an officer standing to the right of the president in the second row and a few seconds after hearing the noise fall to the floor (apparently looking up caused him to lose his balance).

Security actions:

The Venezuelan president’s guards’ response came relatively quickly from the moment he heard the noise, which in the first stage included a range reduction towards the president using open protective measures, and in the second stage, the president was evacuated from the stage and apparently from the incident. The president’s security team correctly analyzed the incident and acted on a decision that suited him. The response of the security team is appropriate for a situation where you understand that some unusual event is taking place but still do not understand exactly what it is so since an explosion sounds you decide not to take a risk and run the shielding reaction drill on the principal and further removal from the sector. It can be seen that the crew left a close protection specialist in a static position who continues to look to the front and does not participate in the shielding operation (the close protection specialist on the left).

The evacuation of the president after the rescue from the stage actually seems calm:

Audience response:

I think the audience response indicates that this is not an attack of drones and bombs from the sky because it seems that while the personalities on stage are responding to the noise, the soldiers continue to stand in their place. I believe that if the soldiers understood that an explosion was taking place above them, they would react with the instinct of a faster escape. The soldiers’ escape from the plaza illustrates what an audience that decides to flee from an event in one moment and together looks like, and especially emphasizes the professional difficulty in controlling it in these moments. The crowd’s escape characteristics underscore the importance of routinely planning and routing crowd routes at mass events.

Drones or gas cylinder explosion in the apartment:

As mentioned, I watched several videos documenting the incident and posted it on YouTube and saw in none of them a trace of the drones or an explosion that occurred over the scene of the incident. It seems logical to me that in the event of an explosion of an explosive attached to a drone, we should have seen in the videos from the incident parts of the drone falling from the sky into the plaza. At no point are parts detected falling from above so I doubt it was an attack of 7 drones with bombs as the president and his aides were quick to announce despite the reaction of the president and those around him on stage looking at the sky.

Other sources, other than the president, claim that it was an explosion of a gas cylinder that took place in an apartment in a building located near the scene and even posted photos of the apartment and the security forces who came to it.

The day after the incident, TV networks started showing a video that apparently came from the Venezuelan authorities in which they claim to see the drone that exploded over the incident.

Video allegedly showing the drone:

Despite showing the video, it is difficult to decide whether this is an authentic photo of the drone from the event in question.

In conclusion, I recommend to all those involved in security in general and close protection, in particular, to continue to seriously examine the threat of drones and the ability of the adversary to use it. ISIS and others have already demonstrated the ability to use a drone to carry out an attack, so it is clear that the day is not far off when other adversaries will emulate them for attempts to harm facilities and even personalities.

Remember that security must be maintained in readiness for any possible and logical situation.

The murder of the late Yitzhak Rabin – the formation of an assassin who tried and succeeded

Article author: Miky Weinberg – Owner of the Tarantula Technologies Ltd and Octagon Security Ltd Companies.

On November 4, 1995, the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated at the end of a rally held in Kings of Israel Square in Tel Aviv.

This is the first time that the ISA’s close protection unit and other security forces, the Israel Police, faced a real adversary who tried and also managed to carry out his plot while crossing all the security rings that existed at the same event. Following the incident, the Shamgar Committee set up to investigate and understand what happened there. That evening, the committee’s conclusions were published in two parts – the public part and the secret part.

Despite the existence of the famous section, I guess that most if not all of you have not read it or part of it and have found it appropriate to draw information about the event from the media that published old and new details since the event and more precisely during the last 17 years.

I enlisted in the close protection unit in early 1992 and thus began my career as a governmental close protection specialist. This means that I went through the whole process, together with the unit, of the period before and after the murder, with all the meanings and changes that have been made since then to this day. On the eve of the incident, I secured a VIP while traveling to the United States so it turned out I was exposed to the murder in a report on CNN.

As an employee and as a close protection specialist, you realize that this is a difficult event, a failure, worst of all, and immediately afterward continues to work in the best way you know as always.

During the years after the murder, my unit members and I continued to work in accordance with the changes made as part of the lessons learned process created following the incident and based on the conclusions of the Shamgar Committee. As a matter of fact, and in retrospect I do not remember sitting to read the conclusions of the inquiry commission probably because I was exposed to them while continuing operational work.

Shortly after retiring from the service, I found myself ready and ripe to sit down and read the entire famous part of the Shamgar Committee. I worked for 20 years in the close protection unit as a close protection specialist, commander, and manager, and only after I left was, I exposed to all the details of that evening and to the entire process that Yigal Amir went through from the planning stage to the assassination of the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

Today, as an expert in the field of security, I make sure to give the close protection specialists a lecture on the murder from the adversary’s perspective, specifically from the side of Yigal Amir, to emphasize what needs to be done to increase the chances of preventing the next assassination attempt.

In this article, I will expose you to the process of the formation of an assassin while attaching to facts only as published by the Commission of Inquiry and without being drawn into political opinions or all sorts of conspiracies published in the media, literature, and the internet.

I must note that while reading the material I often asked myself difficult questions that stemmed from anger and especially from a repeated sense of failure, but for a moment I did not think there were dark details that change the image known to me and the general public and immortalized in a video showing Yigal Amir shooting the prime minister.

The point in time when Yigal Amir, the prime minister, and the close protection unit began to move in three parallel axes is the end of the June 1992 elections in which the late Yitzhak Rabin became prime minister of Israel for the second time.

Yigal Amir was 22 at the time, after military service in the 13th Battalion in the Golani infantry regiment and before being accepted for bachelor’s degree studies at Bar Ilan University.

The close protection unit was established in 1958, following the grenade-throwing incident in the Knesset, which is once again organizing to secure the prime minister and the new ministers while continuing to work on the basis of security theory that believes close protection specialists will act resolutely and professionally against any adversary.

Israeli citizens, including Yigal Amir, watched the prime minister and his government work hard for a peace process with the Palestinians up to the signing of the Oslo Accords. The process included many meetings between leaders from both sides in Israel and abroad, and as it progressed, the “patrons” from around the world, the Americans and the Europeans, noted this, at the White House ceremonies and the Nobel Prize ceremony for the late Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres, and Arafat.

As stated, the process began immediately with the formation of the Rabin government and when it became clear that it was becoming real, supporters and adversaries arose in Israel.

Like the process, adversaries began to take action against the prime minister and his government, initially using legitimate statements, later publishing their views in the media and press until beginning in 1995 they took to the streets shouting, displaying extremist signs, blocking roads, and damaging ministerial vehicles. In Jerusalem with the participation of thousands and MKs from the right-wing party.

 

Attached is a video of the big demonstration in Zion Square in Jerusalem:

Yigal Amir began studying law at Bar Ilan University in 1993. During this time, he still lived at his parents’ house in Herzliya.

Legal Amir had a Beretta pistol with a license. His university friends described him as initiating meetings inside and outside the university. In these meetings, they heard him express himself praising Baruch Goldstein who carried out the massacre in the Cave of the Patriarchs, praising the rabbis’ words about making a “din rodef” [the “din rodef” (“law of the pursuer”), is one of the few provisions in traditional Jewish law permitting extrajudicial killings] ruling regarding the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and some claimed to hear him say Rabin should be assassinated. Yigal Amir strongly opposed the peace process.

During his interrogation, after the murder, Yigal Amir said the following main things:

It took me a long time, about three years, to decide to try to assassinate the prime minister.

I oppose the peace process with the Palestinians and see Arafat as a murderer who should not be talked to or met with.

Without faith in religion, I am not sure I had the power to commit the murder.

Without support, apparently referring to his brother and close friends, not sure I would have been able to take action.

I do not understand how Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres can stand on the same stage together with Arafat the killer at the Nobel Prize ceremony in Oslo.

The media completely ignored the right-wing bloc in Israel.

Rabin brainwashes the citizens of Israel and calls on the soldiers and civilians who were killed as victims of peace.

I know that there are many other adversaries in the nation like me and I will do the necessary thing to stop the process on their behalf.

I heard the rabbis authorizing “din rodef” and Pulsa Denora [in Aramaic, this means the lashes of fire, and in modern usage, this is an invocation of a curse on someone] on Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

Yigal Amir decided to try to assassinate Rabin with his personal pistol that was in his possession.

Before the incident in the square, Yigal Amir arrived with his pistol at two different incidents in which he decided to retrace his steps because of the security around the prime minister.

The close protection unit experienced the change in the public atmosphere every day that its close protection specialists went out on security missions in the field. As the intensity of the events increased, as protesters dared to take extreme action, the unit and the ISA’s leaders would increase security around the prime minister and ministers but did not decide to change the security system.

Two weeks before the incident in the square, during the Prime Minister’s visit to Wingate, a right-wing man burst towards him and reached a short distance from him and stopped at the line of close protection specialists that went around Rabin.

Following the unusual events seen at the time, this incident was also considered very unusual but has not yet led the unit to change the security method.

One week later, the close protection unit and the police were notified of the demonstration in support of the Prime Minister and the peace process on the evening of Saturday, November 4, 1995, in Kings of Israel Square.

Both agencies began planning the security arrangements for an event that was considered to grow by any standard known until then. The operation is considered large and complex. It was decided that the audience at the event will stand in the plaza in front of the balcony of the City Hall, the Prime Minister and the ministers will stand on the balcony that will be defined as an enclosed area for guests only and the northern parking lot (between the City Hall and the city center) will serve as a point of arrival and departure.

The rally began as planned on Saturday, November 4, 1995, when tens of thousands of people came to support the prime minister and the peace process.

Yigal Amir again decided to try to assassinate the prime minister, this time in a demonstration in support at Tel Aviv. In the evening, Yigal Amir went as usual to evening prayer in the synagogue in Herzliya, at the end of which he returned to his parents’ house to get ready to leave.

Yigal Amir dressed in jeans and a T-shirt to look like a leftist and to adapt to the participants in the demonstration.

He loaded the pistol magazine with bullets, making sure it was in order and inserted it into the Beretta pistol in his possession. He put the pistol on the right side and took out his T-shirt so that the pistol could not be seen clearly.

Yigal Amir chose to get to Tel Aviv by bus in order not to get involved with a private car, and indeed after he finished getting organized, he got on the bus and set off for Tel Aviv. It should be noted that during the bus ride he left the kipa on his head.

Yigal Amir got off the bus on Ibn Gvirol Street, at a station located north of Kings of Israel Square, and a moment before he started walking, he took off his kipa to remove any sign of being on the right that did not belong to the left-wing demonstration.

At this point, I would like to point out that Yigal Amir’s only plan at this stage was to assassinate the Prime Minister with the help of his personal pistol. At this point, he still did not know how to do it, from where and when.

Yigal Amir started walking on Ibn Gvirol in a southerly direction, turned right onto Hadassah Street, turned left onto “Malkei Israel” Street, and when he reached the western entrance to the northern parking lot, he stopped. He saw police officers standing at the entrance to the parking lot checking vehicles that wanted to enter but were not checking pedestrians.

Yigal Amir continued to walk south on “Malkei Yisrael”, turned left onto Frishman Street, turned left onto Ibn Gvirol, and walked north until he reached the eastern entrance of the northern parking lot. He stood among all the people who were at the place, looked in the direction of the northern parking lot, and recognized the prime minister’s vehicles and the ministers standing and waiting for the event to end. Yigal understood that at the end of the event, the prime minister would get off the balcony of his car and leave the place. At this point, Yigal Amir decided to stay in his place and as soon as he saw the prime minister, he would pull out his pistol and fire at him in order to hit him.

While waiting, he identified a friend from the university who knows him and his views and knows that he does not belong to the left-wing demonstration. Yigal did not want the friend to recognize him, so he decided to change his plan. He descended quickly on Ibn Gvirol, turned right under the city hall’s balcony, turned right on “Malkei Israel” until he reached the western entrance of the northern parking lot again. Yigal Amir remembered that the police at the entrance did not check pedestrians and therefore entered the parking lot without checking and without interruption. Picture of the northern parking lot:

He identified vehicles parked next to the walls that border the parking lot and considered moving forward while hiding and skipping from vehicle to vehicle.

Eventually, he decided to walk in the middle of the parking lot because he thought that if he hid someone could identify him as an anomalous person.

Yigal Amir walked like anybody else in the middle of the parking lot and reached the area of ​​the stairs coming down from the balcony. He identified the car of the prime minister and ministers. He identified close protection specialists, police officers, border police officers, and various people. He looked around and saw a shuttle vehicle behind him. This is the moment when Yigal Amir decided to make himself a driver so that everyone who looked at him would think he belonged to the shuttle vehicle. He walked back and leaned on the back of the vehicle. composition of the front identified a round stone planter.

During his interrogation, Yigal Amir said that if anyone had approached him at this stage, he would have stepped back and returned to his home.

He advanced forward and sat down on the planter while being a very short distance from the close protection specialist who was in charge of the sector and the policemen who were at the scene. He clearly saw the path of the Prime Minister’s descent from the balcony to the car.

Singer Aviv Geffen came to go up to the balcony and sing the song ‘’To cry for you friend’’, girls started screaming with excitement, Yigal Amir took advantage of the commotion to contact a police officer standing next to him and started talking to him briefly about the singer. He dared to do so to further convince the environment that he was driving the shuttle vehicle. The police officer did not suspect anything and spoke to Yigal Amir.

Shortly afterward, Yigal Amir recognized that ministers were beginning to descend from the balcony – Ora Namir, Shitrit, and Yossi Sarid, and realized that the event was about to end. He decided t’s time for him to release the safety on the pistol. He decides not to do this little action near the planter and so goes two steps back, in the direction of the shuttle vehicle, where he releases the safety and makes the pistol ready for immediate firing.

He then returns to sit on the planter. Suddenly two media people sit next to him. Yigal Amir decides that he is not interested in having a conversation with them in order not to arouse their suspicion, so he gets up and walks in the direction of the shuttle again. That he recognizes that the two are leaving he returns to sit on the planter. (Note, I am reminding you that all his movements are performed at distances of 2 meters.) At a certain point, a police officer turns to Yigal Amir and asks him if another person who is next to him is also a driver. Yigal Amir replies that this is probably a driver from another company. The police officer continues his work. Yigal Amir now clearly understands that he is considered a shuttle driver just as he wanted it to be.

He continues to sit. The close protection specialists and the police decided that there were too many people on the VIP walking route, so they asked all the people who did not belong to the event to leave the area and go to stand on the sidewalk of Ibn Gvirol Street. Yigal Amir listened carefully to the instructions of the close protection specialists and the police and decided to stay in his place. He continues to sit on the planter.

At this point, one of the functionaries at the event, not a close protection specialist, recognizes Yigal Amir and decides that he does not belong and therefore asks one of the policemen to approach him and take him out of the plaza like the rest of the audience. The police officer does move in the direction of Yigal Amir, but in practice gets confused and turns to another person. The police officer then returns to the official. The above recognizes that the police officer was confused and sends him again to get Yigal Amir out of the place. This time the police officer does come to Yigal Amir but because he thought he was driving the shuttle, he asked him to get up from the planter and go stand next to the vehicle. The police officer continued his work. Yigal Amir waited two minutes, after they passed, he returned to stand near the planter.

He hears and recognizes that Foreign Minister Shimon Peres is going downstairs. He is a short distance from him and thinks that if he wanted, he could shoot him. Yigal Amir does not change his plan! He is confident enough that tonight he will be able to carry out the task! To assassinate the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

Shimon Peres finishes talking to the audience and leaves in the direction of his car. The SWAT police officers, who were standing next to Yigal Amir at the time, suddenly left to escort Peres out of the parking lot and the incident.

Yigal Amir continues to stand next to the planter, his pistol ready to fire on the right side under the shirt. He looks to the right and recognizes Yitzhak Rabin, surrounded by close protection specialists, descending the stairs toward his car parked on Amir’s left. He accompanies the movement of the prime minister and the close protection specialists from his place. The group narrows the range to where Yigal Amir stands. The two front guards pass him. Immediately afterward the prime minister and the attached close protection specialists pass him by. He lets the close protection specialist who goes behind and to the right of the prime minister (on the opposite side of Amir’s position) pass him slightly and at that moment starts moving forward while extending his right hand to pull out the pistol, enters between a journalist and the rear close protection specialist, recognizes the prime minister’s back, straightens his hand with the pistol and shoots three Bullets from a distance of about 30 cm. Yigal Amir identified with certainty that he was hitting the prime minister’s back.

The prime minister feels hurt and turns back and forth to try and see who shot him:

The close protection specialist who went behind jumped towards Yigal Amir and managed to knock him to the ground. Yigal Amir dropped his pistol to the floor. At the same time, a number of SWAT police officers jumped on Amir.

The close protection specialists next to the prime minister rescued him in a vehicle that immediately began traveling to Ichilov Hospital.

Some of Yigal Amir’s actions were filmed by a citizen. This is what it looks like (the background noise is the result of an amateur video):

After the doctors determined that Yitzhak Rabin could not be saved, it was clear that one adversary named Yigal Amir managed to overcome all security circles in the incident and assassinated the late Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

We, the members of the close protection unit, have failed twice – we have not been able to prevent and thwart an attack on the prime minister and we have not neutralized the adversary by firing as required of us in combat situations.

This is not a conspiracy; this is a failure. A failure created following a collection of facts that happened in the period before and during the event up to the critical point where Yigal Amir carried out the shooting.

This is a failure of the defending side who was unable to identify in advance a person who does not belong to the place and did not succeed in the counter-reaction as soon as it decided to act.

The adversary, in this case, Yigal Amir, was smart, believing, enterprising, determined, and calm enough to understand that that evening all the conditions that allowed him to carry out his plot were met.

The price of failure insecurity is high and unequivocal! t’s cruel and it hurts! Precisely because of this security must continue to exist!

Lethal shooting at a church in Texas – incident analysis

Article author: Miky Weinberg – Owner of the Tarantula Technologies Ltd and Octagon Security Ltd Companies.

An armed man opened fire on December 29, 2019 (Sunday) inside a church in White Settlement, Texas, killing two people, he has shot him to death. More than 240 community members were at the church at the time of the shooting. Before opening fire, the shooter sat down on a bench, but then he pulled out a weapon, shot one of those present, and killed him. Thus began the short shooting incident.

Two of the worshipers who were at the scene, both volunteers in the security team, returned fire, and managed to eliminate him. One of them was killed.

The entire shooting incident was recorded live on the Internet:

This is a rare record that gives us the ability to learn what a shooting incident looks like inside a hall full of civilians some of whom are armed and functioning as security forces.

Undoubtedly, synagogues and churches around the world have become a preferred target for citizens who are motivated by hate motives and instantly become murderers in cold blood. The abominable murderers find in the house of prayer a combination of a relatively large crowd concentration and the ability to harm religion and convey a message.

The details of the incident in question, prove that the congregation praying in this church is aware of the magnitude of the problem and the threats that exist on them during the time they gather for the weekly prayer and therefore some arrive armed and serve as a civilian security force that can respond to assault.

Looking back on the situation, it is an impressive success that is clearly a continuation of the right-thinking of that community, a success that proves that not only can a community organize and produce effective security, today every community has a duty to become active, perform real actions to produce civilian security using all available tools at their disposal and without the need for large financial expenses if at all.

The time has come for all citizens, anywhere in the world, to understand that they can defend themselves in simple and effective ways that require a basic understanding and a number of simple actions:

The threat: It all starts and ends with the understanding that the threat is real and can be realized at any given moment and especially at times when there is a good concentration of people, and understanding that religious groups are a favorite target of many potential killers.

Realization of the threat: According to recent events, it can be determined that there will usually be one attacker who chooses to use a long weapon in order to carry out his plot. Contrary to the killer’s behavior in the case in question, the attacker usually arrives, enters the building, and immediately starts firing in all directions. In the incident in question, the attacker stayed for a certain period of time while sitting inside the church until the moment he decides to start the attack, and here too he did not immediately start firing.

Duration of the attack: An attacker who does not encounter immediate resistance will continue to fire at civilians as long as he has ammunition or until a response force arrives and neutralizes him. In contrast, an event in which an attacker encounters immediate resistance will last several seconds until it ends. With regard to the incident in question, from the moment the attacker started firing until he was neutralized by one of the armed civilians, a total of only 6 seconds passed.

An effective response: civilians can produce a counter-reaction that will disrupt the attacker’s actions and even neutralize him. The response of civilians in recent incidents proves the saying that the best defense is the attack. A counter-attack, in any way, will succeed in preventing the cruel attacker from continuing to carry out the attack and minimizing the damage that has already begun.

Preparation of the area: Make sure that all openings in the fixture are closed by doors that can be hermetically and tightly closed, one that will make it difficult for unauthorized opening. During prayer, make sure that except for the main front door all other doors are closed and locked. There is an obligation to control and manage the process of persons entering the facility. Care must be taken that the windows on the ground floor do not allow a line of sight from the outside in.

Management of the entrance to the facility: In light of the recent events, it is clear that it is mandatory to identify everyone who arrives and is interested in entering the prayer hall. This is an easy task to accomplish because community members know each other and will immediately recognize a person who is not known as belonging or who is addicted and behaves in an unusual way. Identification and screening as needed would have increased the chance of detecting the unusual attacker and even identifying the long weapon he hid under the coat.

Civilian security forces: According to the number of armed civilians seen in the video, it is clear that this is a community that is aware of the danger and has been prepared accordingly. I have no doubt that the arrival of some of the civilians with a personal pistol is an early and planned initiative and even placing some of them in positions that look like security positions for everything. The quick, determined, and accurate response of the citizen is the one that managed to neutralize the attacker in a short time and thus prevent harm to many more citizens.

Remember security needs to be maintained in civilian communities as well

The security guard who arrested a suicide bomber at the Mike’s Place nightclub (Israel)

Article author: Miky Weinberg – Owner of the Tarantula Technologies Ltd and Octagon Security Ltd Companies.

April 30, 2003, at almost 01:00, a loud explosion tears apart the Tel Aviv nightlife and dismantles the opening of the Mike’s Place nightclub at the height of a lively and entertaining night party. Dozens of wounded, dead, police and ambulances, crowds, and fear of death that gripped the survivors of the explosion and paralyzed them to silence mixed with helpless looks in front of the tragic sights and the pungent smell that burned in the nose and memory for many years to come.

Moments before, Avi Tabib, the club’s regular security guard, meets in his eyes a man who seems unusual in his behavior, Avi, with a hunter’s instinct who has adapted himself thanks to his street smarts, felt something he could not ignore about the approaching person. Avi reciprocates in his heart that this is a person who will cause problems at the club and therefore makes a decision not to let him in. From here it all happens at breakneck speed:

Their eyes cross, the unusual person reaches the entrance to the club and stands in front of Avi.

The guy probably understands he’ll have a problem with the security guard. Avi is determined to stop him and not allow him to enter the club. Avi addresses him verbally, and the guy replies in English that he wants to go into the club to drink beer. Avi explains that he cannot enter the club tonight. The unusual person moves a few steps back, Avi turns to talk to one of the employees standing next to him, the unusual person tries to take advantage of this and progresses to the entrance with a quick walk and tries to go between Avi and the employee, Avi makes physical contact to stop his progress and prevent him from entering, Avi places his two hands on the unusual man’s waist and pushed him back without any special resistance on his part, suddenly Avi feels a change in the guy’s behavior, his body as if slightly tensed. Avi the security guard is trying to figure out what the matter is.

At that moment, a violent explosion ripped through the night on the promenade in Tel Aviv, total destruction within a few tens of meters, people flew in all directions, the terrorist’s body was split in two, and Avi the security guard, who was closest to the center of the explosion flew a huge distance and he hit his head on one of the club tables.

Avi is lying on the floor, his body was the first to absorb the force of the explosive device that pierced the heart of Tel Aviv and the news channels throughout the country.

“Avi Tabib, the permanent security guard of Mike’s Place, is dead” – this is what everyone who knew him and stayed at the club at the time of the attack thought and said. No one believed that there was a person who could absorb such an explosion and stay alive.

Avi, the security guard, they thought to themselves- Avi prevented the suicide bomber from entering the club and with his body saved many other people.

The attack on Mike’s Place club on April 30, 2003, was a suicide bombing carried out by two British British Muslims of Pakistani origin at the entrance to the club at the Herbert Samuel 86 platform in Tel Aviv. A first terrorist blew himself up at the entrance after Avi the security guard prevented him from entering and the second fled the scene. Three people were killed in the attack and more than 50 were injured. The terrorist organizations Hamas and the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades claimed joint responsibility for the attack. A Hamas video was later released in the Gaza Strip of the terrorists in uniform and weapons under the Hamas flag.

The attack was planned as a qualitative attack and a mass attack and was carried out against the background of the publication of the “Road Map” plan – to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. A plan was presented by US President George W. Bush in his speech on June 24, 2002.

The choice of Mike’s Place was due to a number of reasons: both because of its location – in the neighborhood of the United States Embassy, ​​both because of the large number of foreign citizens in it, and because it is popular and crowded with people.

The intention was to use two suicide bombers of British descent with standard plastic explosives. The use of foreign nationals is intended to increase difficulties in the Israeli security mechanisms in detecting the terrorist team. The use of two terrorists was to increase the number of casualties and the use of standard plastic explosives to make it difficult to detect and signal the capabilities of the sending organization.

On the day of the incident at 00:45, Asif Muhammad Hanif and Omar Khan Sharif, two British suicide bombers of Pakistani origin, arrived at the club. Asif Muhammad Hanif tried to enter the club but aroused the suspicion of Avi Tabib the security guard who refused to let him into the club. After a brief argument in which the terrorist realized that the security guard insisted on not entering, he moved a little to the side to calculate his steps, when at the same time the late Dominic Hess who worked at the place went to talk to Avi the security guard. The terrorist who thought Avi the security guard was not watching tried to break into the club. Avi the security guard blocked the terrorist’s path and pushed him from the front door towards the road. During the fight outside the club, he blew himself up on Avi the security guard.

I know I’m going to surprise you, Avi the security guard, the one who absorbed the full energy of the explosive device detonated by the terrorist, survived, and was evacuated to the hospital in a very critical condition. The doctors fought for his life with all their might and allowed him to get his life back. Avi’s speedy recovery was defined as a medical miracle. And for him to stand in front of me now and tell me his unbelievable story, now all we have left to do is learn from whoever was there.

Today, September 14, 2020, I met with Avi Tabib the legendary security guard of the Mike’s Place club to hear and learn from him about the event as a firsthand source.

Thanks to his special character, sharp senses, street smarts, courage, and strong body, Avi Tabib saved the lives of many other people, and today he met with me to describe the evening of the attack and no less important the process that went through the evening of the attack out of understanding the importance of conveying professional lessons and messages to everyone who deals with the security profession and especially for those who take part in civil security.

Hello Avi, I am so happy to meet you and get to know you and your unique and instructive personal story.

Avi Tabib: Thank you. I think what you are doing is nothing less than a mission that will undoubtedly help many security guards to better understand the essence and importance of the role of the security guard wherever he is. Over the years, since the attack, I make sure to give lectures to security guards to explain to them that being a security guard is not a summer camp and further on that, I think an article on your blog will add value to this mission.

What is your background, how did you get into security?

Avi Tabib: Just by chance. After military service, I flew to the United States and stayed there for ten years. During these years I studied martial arts and at some point, I started working as a security guard at one of the clubs. The skills I acquired in combat and the work experience raised my self-confidence and sense of ability. Over time I felt all the time that I knew what I was doing.

When did you return to Israel and start working at Mike’s Place?

Avi Tabib: A month after the events of 9/11 in the United States, I returned to Israel. I began to reorganize – studies and work. At the same time, Operation Defensive Shield began in Israel and I suddenly found myself drafted into the reserve for the first time. It is important for me to note that service in the Israel Defense Forces on a regular basis and in the reserve has helped me over the years to become who I am while overcoming being extremely hyperactive. During the reserved service, we came across an unusual incident during which I responded with combat that included firing on a bursting vehicle. Also in this event, I realized that I have self-confidence and the ability to function and respond prominently.

The reserve duty was over and I returned to work at an event security company. One day, one of the owners of the Mike’s Place club, who was with me in the army, offered me to come and work for him at the club as a security guard. I accepted the offer because it suited as a student and also because I felt that I knew what to do in a job of this type, I felt that I would be able to fulfill my responsibility.

Have you taken a course or professional training for a security guard position?

Avi Tabib: Until the attack on Mike’s Place, I did not take any courses or professional training for the position of a security guard. I learned on my own, on the job, as they say, using everything I went through in military service, combat skills, and working in the United States. I knew and felt that precisely because I was hyperactive I had a professional and clear advantage in the field.

How did you know what to do during the shift?

Avi Tabib: I am an example of how everything a person goes through over the years and his natural nature becomes equivalent to a course, a course from the field, a course of real life.

In time, I realized and believed that readiness meets the opportunity – if you make sure you work right, you will be able to respond correctly.

At the Mike’s Place club I worked in civilian clothes and not in the classic attire of a security guard, which in retrospect turned out to be a kind of possible mistake – it is possible that if the terrorists had identified me as a security guard at the entrance to the club, they would not have chosen the club as the target. Today I can say that in order to be a security guard, one must undergo appropriate professional training.

As mentioned, even though I did not have professional training for the job, I always felt that when needed I would know what to do, and more than that, I knew I would act in the face of real danger. I turned my activeness into an advantage in the field – I joined the staff at the club, I made myself a part of the place, I was part of the team, I made sure to know the club’s regular customers, I formed working relationships and cooperation with the American embassy security guards who worked next to me, I walked around my post and did not stand in one place, my eyes worked non-stop.

I basically created for myself a security environment of collaborating with anyone who was aware of me being the club security guard, everyone would inform me in real-time about anomalous people. So I added more eyes to the field. I remember more than once people would ask me why I was paranoid and that was my sign that they saw that I was active, very active.

What was on the eve of the attack?

Avi Tabib: I worked on the busy days of the club, Tuesday to Saturday, between the hours of 21: 00-04: 00. I was aware of the period of terrorist attacks that took place in Israel at that time. I did not receive any professional instructions from the police to carry out security at the club. Before the eve of the event, I managed to work at the club for about half a year. April 30, 2003, was a Tuesday, a day when the club is crowded with people, about 300 people are inside and outside the club. Throughout the evening you will hear loud music from bands that have come to the club to play.

I arrived for the shift at 9 pm after studies and after karate practice. At around 22:30 the club was fully occupied and at the height of its activity. As usual, I was active, I performed many actions, I controlled the field, I knew who was familiar and who was new, people were always around me, some of the staff would come to me during the evening to draw my attention to exceptions or just to talk. I have always been able to pay attention in an active and noisy environment so it did not stop me from being focused on the task. The evening progressed, at 00:50, I lift my head above the heads of the people around me and look south. I recognize a man moving from the American embassy towards the club. I immediately thought to myself that this was a problematic person and told myself that I would prevent him from entering the club. I clearly remember that man wearing a long-sleeved shirt and I did not recognize anything unusual about him in his visual appearance. The same person comes up to me at the entrance to the club and stands in front of me. I classified him as a problematic person and not as a terrorist. I was usually worried that people who could cause problems at the club would not get into it.

What did you do the moment he stood in front of you and after you decided not to let him into the club?

Avi Tabib: First I stood at the entrance so he could not pass me and go inside and then I started asking him:

Avi: Yes.

Terrorist: (Response in English)  I want to enter.

Avi: Says in English – tonight you can not enter the club.

Terrorist: I want to come in, have a beer.

The more the terrorist insisted the more I realized I was not going to let him into the club. At that point, one of the staff members came to me to talk to me. I told her to wait. At the same time, I saw the terrorist move a few steps back. I must point out, that up to this point the conversation with this exceptional person was not unusual because such incidents happened to me all the time on all shifts. After the terrorist has moved a few steps away from the entrance, I exchange a few words with the worker. The terrorist sees this and thinks I may not be awake so he decides to move quickly to the entrance to try to get in between me and the same worker. I immediately recognized the terrorist’s movement forward, placed both hands on his waist, and began to push him back to keep him away from the entrance. I felt that the terrorist was allowing me to push him without resistance on his part. Suddenly I felt a kind of alertness in his body a kind of what seemed like a slight resistance on his part.

There was indeed action on the part of the terrorist – this was the point where he decided to press the power button of the explosive device that was attached to his back. 2 kg explosive charge, relatively thin, glued to the back under the shirt, a charge without the shrapnel.

What do you remember that happened to you after the explosion?

Avi Tabib: The next time I remember I was seriously injured in the intensive care unit at the hospital. In retrospect, I know that I was lying under one of the tables and that at this point no one approached me. I think I was conscious and trying to call for help. I did not understand why no one heard me and did not come to help me. In retrospect, it became clear to me that my vocal cords had been damaged by the explosion and that is why I did not have a sound.

Anyone who saw my confrontation with the terrorist and saw the loud explosion of the bomb then said that he also saw me flying backward on her own and just did not believe that there was a situation in which I remained alive. Thought I was dead. Lying down on the table and just dead.

At one point, as part of the treatment of the wounded and the evacuation of the dead, they also reached Avi the security guard and discovered that against all odds he had survived the explosion and remained alive. Avi was mortally wounded. Avi was immediately evacuated to the hospital where he underwent complex medical treatment that saved his life. The doctors defined the case of Avi as a medical miracle.

Avi the security guard is transported from the club:


Avi the security guard recovers at the hospital:

Avi was in the hospital for 3 weeks after which he continued the rehabilitation process. In October 2003 he returned to work as a security guard at the Mike’s Place club. In December 2003 he returned to reserve service in the army.

Video describing the event:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3l13BI78UAw&t=5s

What are the lessons and messages from the event and your personal operational experience that you are interested in conveying to security guards today?

Avi Tabib:

The security guard at the edge must first be aware that an emergency can occur during any shift.

A security guard with awareness will be better prepared.

A security guard must believe that preventive actions really work and affect the opponent – visibility, scans, questioning, etc.

An active security guard will be more alert and avoid unnecessary habits in the shift routine.

I learned that being visible as a security guard is very important.

At no stage should the opponent be underestimated.

Many security guards today have no idea what it means to not be alert to a task for even one second – looking at a cell phone, unnecessary calls, thoughts unrelated to work, etc.

Every security guard should know that everyone who looks at him, the security objects, and the opponent, knows if he is doing the security as required.

Avi Tabib is not only the legendary security guard of the Mike’s Place club, but he is also a security guard who already in 2003, long before the field of civil security was regulated with an established mindset and guidelines, managed to define an action based on his being hyperactive, one who cannot stand in one place, a curious person, A suspicious person, an environmentally alert person, a brave person who is not afraid to act and deal with the problem in the field.

For me, Avi Tabib, the security guard from the Mike’s Place club, fits exactly with our professional definition of a hunter security guard – a security guard who believes that his opponent is close and can arrive at any moment:

Avi Tabib is an example of a security guard who is well aware of his strengths and weaknesses and knows how to use them during the task with great wisdom, perseverance, and determination while truly believing time and time again that the opponent can appear at his location, in his shift and every shift. Thanks to this belief, Avi was able to cope with the routine and its effects on the security guard during his hard work. This was not the first time Avi recognized an anomalous person in the sector and decided not to let him into the club, an event of this kind happened to Avi on every shift. The main difference on the eve of the event was that this time that unusual person was a terrorist and not just a “troublemaker”. Until the moment of the explosion, Avi did not know that he was a suicide bomber, which emphasizes the working assumption that every security guard must act constantly to detect anomalies where threats can occur at the moment of identification to carry out an actual security operation appropriate to the existing situation. The security guard is not allowed to clear anomalies based on assumptions on his part, he is obliged to approach and question the person. Avi proved that the actions of the security guard do influence the decisions of the opponent.

Inwardly, Avi Tabib always knew that in the test of truth he would act, he would respond, he would be active, and so it happened that evening on April 30, 2003.

Avi Tabib, the legendary security guard of Mike’s Place, physically stopped a suicide bomber from entering the club and saved from death and injuring dozens of people who were in it that deadly evening. Had he not allowed the suicide bomber to enter the club and activate the explosive device attached to his back, there is no doubt that the number of dead and wounded would have been much greater.

Avi takes every opportunity to lecture the security guards about the incident in order to convey to them what he understood and applied already in 2003 – Avi’s story must become history for every security guard wherever he or she may be.

Remember that security should be maintained with the belief that your opponent is closer than you think!

 

 

Close protection- the attack on Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny with disinfectant

Article author: Miky Weinberg – Owner of the Tarantula Technologies Ltd and Octagon Security Ltd Companies.

Russia’s opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, was attacked during an election visit to a city in Siberia by a man who approached him from the front and sprayed dangerous green disinfectant on his face. The incident, filmed by another citizen and immediately posted on broadcast networks and social networks, once again proves how difficult it is for personal security guards to deal with existing threats and especially with any course of action that is not clearly perceived and/or does not injure anyone in an unambiguous way as does a combat situation.

Alexei Navalny after the attack:

A video documenting the attack:

As mentioned, in the list of threats against VIPs there are threats that are very clear to close protection specialists such as an unequivocal attack and therefore the transition into a combat incident will be quick and lead to a focused, quick and determined response to try and prevent injury to the protectee or minimize the harm that has already been done. This is a very difficult task for close protection specialists, especially when the adversary managed to get close to the VIP and surprises by making the first move with the attacking action he or she chose to execute.

If in clear cases of assault it can be estimated that professional close protection specialists were not confused or mistaken in identification and response, then in threats like the assault against Alexei Navalny it would be difficult to depart from such a premise. Attacks on VIPs that are carried out by throwing an object or spilling liquid or squirting material, make it difficult for security guards to identify, understand the threat, and later also to choose the right response. In the video, we see that the attacker manages to reach a very close distance from the front with the tool that contains the green disinfectant, without Alexei’s front guard recognizing it before the attack itself and therefore the attacker realizes his malicious intent and manages to spray the disinfectant at Alexey’s face, who is the protectee. The close protection specialists’ lack of understanding of what happened and what attacked the protectee is clearly seen when the front bodyguard reacts willingly to chase after the attacker and immediately afterward seems remorseful and returns to Alexei to understand what it is all about. This confusion among the security guards reinforces the fact about threats that are not as clear cut as a combat incident. Alexei’s close protection team did not see weapons, did not hear the noise of gunfire, and did not hear screams of injury and therefore they reacted with utter confusion.

For close protection specialists to be able to deal with threats of this kind as well, there must be a methodology that defines how security is performed by one or more close protection specialists and is expressed in the professional training that must be conveyed.

When there is a pair of two close protection specialists with the protectee, there is a division of roles for one bodyguard in the position that is close to the protectee in the back and a second bodyguard in the position where generally goes forward before the protectee does. The bodyguard in the front must know how to identify any person coming to the personality from the front sector and must know how to focus on looking into the hands of each such person to try and identify if they have anything that could pose a real danger to the protectee. This professional ability of the security guards is related to the preventive actions – actions that are taken in order to be able to identify in advance the possibility of an attack and reach the potential attacker before reaching the implementation of the chosen attacking action.

To the delight of Alexei Navalny in that in retrospect the attacker probably only wanted to create provocation and did not really want to physically harm him. In contrast, his protection team could not breathe a sigh of relief because they failed in the security task for which they were hired. Close protection specialists who allow the opponent to attack first, start the event with a disadvantage and in some cases even if they react quickly and resolutely will not be able to prevent the injury to the personality and therefore the importance of the correct work of close protection specialists in the prevention phase.

If the opponent managed to surprise and attack first, then the two bodyguards must act in accordance with the division of roles in an emergency situation, with the emphasis on stopping and neutralizing the real threat by attacking and/or removing the protectee from the danger zone. Immediately afterward, the bodyguard that is close to the protectee should check if the protectee has been damaged in order to ascertain if any medical treatment is needed.

I have no idea what is the level of training and professionalism of Alexei Navalny’s bodyguards, but it is clear that the bodyguard was unable to understand what happened and what he should do from the moment the attack began. A professional bodyguard first has to look back to make sure the bodyguard who is close to the protectee was functioning and the personality in a situation where there was no need to join the evacuation and only then he had to act quickly to try and get to the attacker.

Close protection is considered a profession for all that entails, and therefore it requires professional training by a body licensed to perform the above type of training.

Not every security guard can work in close protection and therefore anyone who sends a security guard without special training for this task endangers the protected VIP, the bodyguards themselves, and even himself.

Alexei Navalny could breathe a sigh of relief and could have used his transformation into a green man to advance his candidacy for the presidency in Russia only thanks to the attacker and certainly not thanks to his security guards.

Remember that security should be maintained only on the basis of dedicated and professional training.