Chief Gary Yandura of the Brookhaven Police Department and Sandy Springs Police Chief Ken DeSimone have returned home after spending two weeks in Israel for training in the latest counterterrorism techniques and technologies by that nation’s top police officers.
They joined a delegation of sheriffs, police chiefs, a deputy commissioner and an inspector from 17 Georgia public safety and law enforcement agencies, as well as law enforcement leaders from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, who participated in the 23rd annual peer-to-peer public safety training program organized by the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange at Georgia State University.
Georgia Sen. Johnny Isakson sent the 2015 delegation a letter of thankful appreciation and support for GILEE’s efforts to educate and promote public safety in Georgia.
“By sharing ideas and bringing together Georgia law enforcement agencies and the police force of the State of Israel, GILEE is providing valuable information and training in the areas of counterterrorism and drug interdiction,” he wrote.
Since its 1992 founding, GILEE has graduated more than 1,050 public safety and law enforcement officials from all over the world – about half from the U.S., mostly from Georgia – through 312 training exchanges.
