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I really love reading the answers by all the armchair “experts” who get their so-called facts from Facebook and god knows what other fake news sites. Apparently, they’re experts on everything, despite never having lived in the region, not knowing even basic history, who probably didn't even known who Kurds or other ethnic groups in the region were until ISIS. And now all of a sudden they know more then the people actually living thru these events…how interesting…Anyways, back to actual FACTS!Kurds were divided into 4 regions after the Treaty of Lausanne; Syria, Iraq, Turkey and Iran. Since the question only asks about the Kurds in Iraq and Syria, I will only focus on those two regions.Iraqi Kurds (Bashuri Kurds)Yes, Israel does support the Kurds in Iraq and has in an official capacity since 1960, although much of it has been covert. The relationship between the Kurds and Israel; however, extends much earlier then 1960, as many Kurds in Iraq helped to smuggle Jews to Israel during the Farhud genocide. In turn, Israel helped Kurds during the “Anfal Genocide” (https://www.hrw.org/reports/1993/iraqanfal/ANFALINT.htm) Saddam committed against the Kurdish community (In which Saddam killed an estimated 150,000–200,000 Kurds, forcibly relocated hundreds of thousands more (many of whom died in the process) and razed hundreds of villages to the ground.) Many tribes in Kurdistan were also of Jewish descent, coming from tribes that resettled there after Assyrian conquest of the northern kingdom of Israel. So, the relationship has been a long and mutually beneficial one.“Israeli expert on Iraqi Kurdistan-Israel relations Prof. Ofra Bengio of Tel Aviv University and the Moshe Dayan Center told the Magazine that the Kurds are deeply interested in Israel, and that her own book The Kurds of Iraq was translated into Kurdish.“Both countries’ legitimacy is contested by its neighbors, which the Kurds understand as a mutual fate, a shared history,” said Bengio. “There is also an actual shared history. Jews lived on relatively good terms in Kurdistan, and Israel’s ties with the Kurds trace back to the 1960s and earlier. The Kurds see the Israeli nation-building project as a model and consider Zionist leaders inspirational.”Kurds in SyriaThe relationship with the Kurds in Syria; however, has been much more recent, as the Kurds only recently attained autonomy there over the past couple years. While “Israel does not have formal relations with the Syrian Kurds and they have many different interests, an analysis of the regional alliances will reveal that the status of Rojava is relevant to Jerusalem’s national security interest in undermining Iran’s hegemony.” (Why Rojava matters for Israel)Typically, Israel usually tries to avoid taking a public stand on political strife in neighboring countries, so for the past six years, Israel has followed a “policy of non-intervention” in Syria except when the security of its northern borders are challenged. So far, it has been careful to stay out of the politics of the civil war in Syria and limit its involvement, at least publicly, to targeted security concerns and humanitarian matters.However, Israel’s efforts to strike alliances with effective groups on the ground have failed. Tehran is clearly determined to establish a foothold on Israel’s northern border and set up bases for Hezbollah, which would amount to a Syrian version of the Lebanese militia. It appears abundantly clear that the Kurds are the most qualified (if not the only candidate ) in Syria on which Israel can count for support.” (The Syrian Kurds: Israel's forgotten ally )So if Israel supports the Kurds in Syria, they cannot do so openly, as their policy has been to keep silent about any presence they have Syria. Most likely they do, even if it’s not direct, as the Kurds are the only buffer between Israel and other nations which are hostile to Israel. Considering that the United States and France directly support, train and equip the Syrian Kurds, who have also received assistance from countries such as France and Germany, it is not unfathomable to think Israel would help as well, albeit indirectly or covertly.Israeli TV Reports From Syrian Democratic Forces-held Territory For First Time EverRead on for a more detailed answer:The Kurdish and Jewish relationship goes back centuries:In antiquity:The Jewish community in Mesopotamia was one of the oldest in the world, dating back to the Babylonian conquest of the southern tribes of Israel, (mostly the tribe of Judah) in 586 BCE. A smaller group of Israelites were taken into captivity almost 150 years earlier from the northern part of Israel by Assyria, in 722 BCE.The Medes\kurdish relationship with the Jews:2 Kings 17:6In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.First mention of the Medes in Scripture is found in the prophetic utterance of Isaiah when he declared 175 years before it was fulfilled, “Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it” (Isaiah 13:17; cp. 21:2).Jeremiah also states that the Medes will be used of God to destroy Babylon: “Make bright the arrows; gather the shields: the Lord hath raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes: for his device is against Babylon, to destroy it; because it is the vengeance of the Lord, the vengeance of his temple” (Jeremiah 51:11; cp. 51:28).“While the prophetic record concerning the Medes and the Persians is clear and its fulfillment is confirmed by history, its principal importance is historical rather than prophetic. In contrast to the Babylonian Empire which is significant for its destruction of Jerusalem, the city of God, beginning Gentile dominion over Israel which will not culminate until Christ comes in His second advent, the rise of the Medes and the Persians is important as forming the background of Israel’s partial restoration.Three of the historical books, namely, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther and three of the minor prophets, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi have their context in the reign of the Medo-Persian Empire. During this period the captives of Judah were permitted to go back to Jerusalem and restore their ancient city and its temple. The key to the Babylonian Empire is Gentile dominion over Jerusalem. The key to the Empire of the Medes and the Persians is restoration of Jerusalem.Daniel gives a whole chapter to the account of his being cast into the lions’ den. This important episode in the life of Daniel, while affording many spiritual lessons of God’s care over His prophet as well as foreshadowing God’s protection over the people of Israel as a whole, illustrates the beneficent attitude of the Medes and the Persians to the people whom they had conquered. Their deference to individual religious faith is manifested in the attitude of Darius to Daniel and his earnest desire that Daniel might be delivered from the lions.Darius himself, described in Daniel 5:31 as “Darius the Median,” is properly identified as Gobryas or Gubaru, a governor of Babylon appointed by Cyrus the supreme monarch of the empire of the Medes and the Persians. (Cyrus II or Cyrus the Great reigned from 559 b.c. until he was killed in battle in 530 b.c.) Darius the Mede is mentioned a number of times in Daniel (6:1, 6, 9, 25, 28; 9:1; 11:1). Darius seems to have reigned under Cyrus in governing the southern portion of the kingdom known as the Fertile Crescent. The statement that “Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian” (Daniel 6:28) must therefore be interpreted as the reign of Darius under the contemporary reign of Cyrus.”In contemporary history:The Kurdish and Israeli governments share a long-winded relationship, “dating back to the eighth century when Kurdistan was home to the Jewish Benjamin tribe”. Today, over 200,000 Jewish-Kurds have resettled in modern-day Israel after the ‘Farhud’ violence under the Hussein regime, and have carved out strong pro-Kurdish sentiment in the Israeli political sphere.8th Century:Tradition holds that Israelites of the tribe of Benjamin first arrived in the area of modern Kurdistan after the Assyrian conquest of the Kingdom of Israel during the 8th century BC. According to the Torah, it is believed that the tribe of Benjamin is one of the ten tribes of Israel which were dispersed by the Neo-Assyrian Empire circa 722 BCE.12th Century:An ancient tradition relates that the “Jews of Kurdistan are the descendants of the Ten Tribes from the time of the Assyrian exile. The first to mention this was R. *Benjamin of Tudela , the 12th century traveler who visited Kurdistan in about 1170 and found more than 100 Jewish communities. In the town of *Amadiya alone, there were 25,000 Jews who spoke the language of the Targum (Aramaic) and whose numbers included scholars.” The Jews of Kurdistan spoke an Aramaic with insertions of Turkish, Persian, Kurdish, Arabic, and Hebrew words. They called it the "language of the Targum" or Lishna Yehudiyya("language of the Jews"), as well as Lashon ha-Galut. The Arabs called it jabalī, i.e., "of the mountains," because it was essentially spoken by the inhabitants of the mountainsBenjamin of Tudela also gives the account of David Alroi, the messanic leader from central Kurdistan, who rebelled against the king of Persis and had plans to lead the Jews back to Jerusalem.” These travellers also report of well-established and wealthy Jewish communities in Mosul, which was the commercial and spiritual center of Kurdistan. Many Jews fearful of approaching crusaders, had fled from Syria and Palestine to Babylonia and Kurdistan. The Jews of Mosul enjoyed some degree of autonomy over managing their own community.[12] (at this time, Mosul was a Kurdish city).1500–1600’sAsenath Barzani, who later married Rabi Jacob MizrahiAbout 30 Kurdish paytanim are known from among the inhabitants of Barazan, Mosul, Amadiya, Ḥarīr, Naṣībīn, *Zākho , and other places. They wrote religious and secular poems in Hebrew and in Aramaic; 54 of them were published by Abraham Ben-Jacob in his book Kehillot Yehudei Kurdistan (1961). The most important of these poets were R. Samuel b. Nethanel ha-Levi *Barazani , who was also a rosh yeshivah in Mosul during the 17th century, and his daughter Asenath; R. Phineas b. R. Isaac Ḥariri and his son R. Ḥayyim; R. Simeon b. Jonah Mizraḥi; R. Gershon b. Raḥamim; R. Simeon b. Benjamin Abidani; R. Moses b. Isaac Bajulnaya; R. Samuel b. Simeon ʿAjamiya; R. Baruch b. Samuel Mizraḥi, the author of Shirei Zimrah; and others.Of particular importance was Asenath Barzani, who was a young Jewish-Kurdish woman who served as “rosh yeshivah in Mosul and as a leader of the Jewish community”.She is considered the “first female rabbi of Jewish history by some scholars, and her writings demonstrate her mastery of Hebrew, Torah, Talmud, Midrash, and Kabbalah.” Asenath died in 1670 and was buried in Amediye, in Kurdistan-Iraq.Farhud Genocide:During the " Farhud Genocide , “179 Jews of both sexes and all ages were killed, 242 children were left orphans, and 586 businesses were looted, 911 buildings housing more than 12,000 people were pillaged. The total property loss was estimated by the Jewish community's own investigating committee to be approximately 680,000 pounds.” (Remembering the Destruction of Iraqi Jewry)Due to rising anti-semitism, Jews in Iraq were targeted by pro-Nazi Arab officers, policemen and civilians. Although Fritz Grobba, The Nazi- envoy to the Middle East, was successful in recruiting Arab Iraqis, as well as Arabs in other nations, he had no such luck with the Kurds.“Israeli intelligence veterans say that cooperation took the form of military training for Kurds in northern Iraq, in return for their help in smuggling out Jews as well as in spying on Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq”.When the Israeli Government talks about “Kurds smuggling Jews out” they are speaking about the Farhud genocide. When Fritz Grobba arrived in Iraq to rally the Arabs to the Nazi cause by promising to help them evict the British who the Arabs saw as “colonialist occupiers”, he also tried to appeal to the Kurds and Sheikh Barzinji in the same way that he did the Iranians and Reza Shah -Exposing Iran's links to the Nazis - Jewish Telegraphic Agency . Grobba’s argument was that both groups, the Kurds and the Iranians, were part of the “Aryan Nation’s”, and that they should join in with their “German brethren” in attacking Jews. Although getting rid of the British in Kurdistan (which had conducted several RAF bombings against Kurds in the Kurdistan region of Iraq) was an attractive proposition, Sheikh Barzanji and the Kurds refused to join the Nazis. Instead the Kurds helped both Kurdish Jews and Iraqi Jews escape persecution by smuggling them thru the Kurdish mountains. As a result, the Kurdish-Iraq and Israeli relationship was born as Israel did not forget what the Kurds did for Jews in iraq.Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji (center)1940’s-1950’s: Kurdish and Iraqi Jews flee to Israel in Operation Ali Baba, later named Operation Ezra and NehemiahKurdish-Jewish Family immigrating to IsraelThe Kurdish Immigrants Who Built IsraelIraqi Jews on board a plane to IsraelThe expulsion that backfired: When Iraq kicked out its JewsRabbi Moshe Gabai, head of the Jews of Zakho, with President of Israel Yitzhak Ben-Zvi1960’s:Israel has maintained discreet military, intelligence and business ties with the Kurds since the 1960s, seeing in the minority ethnic group a buffer against shared Arab adversaries.Barzani’s Secret Trips to Israel:In 1961, when the Kurdish revolution was in dire straits, activist Ismet Sherif Vanly (above) suggested to Kurdish leader Mulla Mustafa Barzani that he contact Jerusalem for help. Vanly went to Israel where he met Prime Minister Levi Eshkol, as well as Shimon Peres. Following that visit, the Israeli government sent a permanent representative to Iraqi Kurdistan. The Israelis also attempted to arrange meetings for Vanly with U.S. officials, but the latter refused.“In 1963 & 1968, Mullah Mustafa Barzani made his first Secret trip to Israel as well as his second, respectivelyMustafa Barzani with Yaakov Hazan the Leader of Mapam party in Israel in 1968Mustafa Barzani with Yaakov Hazan the Leader of Mapam party in Israel in 1963Barzani & Mardinli Musa Dayan (Moşê Dayan)Visit of the Mossad to Kurdish leader Mullah Mustafa Barzani's head quarter in Kurdistan's mountains.— With Safti Barzani, Ahron Cohen, Nissim Avraham, Şêrko Sebrî and Diyar Kurde Israel.The Secret Friendship Behind Israel’s Support Of Kurdish IndependenceFirst Kurdish-Iraqi War 1961–1970Iran was in the “middle of a conflict with Iraq over the border between the two countries by the Shatt ul-Arab river. The Iranian Monarch Mohammad Pahlavi Shah believed that Iraq unlawfully reigned over what actually belonged to Iran. Furthermore, Iran feared the Soviet’s growing influence in Iraq, who later was to become an ally of the superpower in the Middle East. By supporting the Iraqi Kurds and thereby making them reliant on himself, the Shah would now be able to make demands of them: The Kurdish-Iranian Peshmerga, PDFKI, who had been attacking Iran, was hiding in Iraqi Kurdistan. In return for helping the Iraqi Kurds, the Shah demanded that Barzanî put an end to PDKI’s activities in Iraqi Kurdistan and hand over some of their activists to Iran. Barzanî accepted. (Israel once supported the Kurds – but then left them in the lurch )The Iranian Monarch, Shah Mohammed PahlaviIsrael “supported the Kurds partly as a counterweight to Soviet’s influence in Iraq but also to distract the Iraqi army.Israeli military advisers not only trained Kurdish guerrillas as a way to reduce the potential military threat Iraq presented to the Jewish state, but also the threat that Syria presented to Israel. This training operation was codenamed "Marvad" (Carpet). In the mid-1960s, Shimon Peres, the Israeli Deputy Minister of Defense and later Prime Minister, met secretly with Kumran Ali Bedir-Khan, a Kurdish leader who had spied for the Israelis in the 1940s and 1950s.According to a former senior Mossad official Eliezer Tsafrir, Israel had military advisers at the headquarters of Mulla Mustafa Barzani in 1963, where they trained and supplied the Kurdish units with fire arms, field and anti-aircraft artillery. Israel also spent tens of millions of dollars on the support of the Kurds, supplying them via Iran, which pursued its own goals in Iraq and had close ties with Israel up until 1979.The Parastin, the intelligence service of the Kurdish Democratic Party, was also established with Mossad’s support in the late 1960s. The operations conducted by the Israeli intelligence agency in Northern Iraq were of particular significance for Israel because the Iraqi Kurds were pounded not only by the Iraqi troops but also by the regular army of Syria, another Arab state ruled by the Baath party. After the commencement of active hostilities in Northern Iraq against the Kurds in 1963, Syria, concerned about the spread of the Kurdish sepa- ratism in its territory, offered necessary support to Baghdad to combat the Kurdish forces. The Syrian troops strengthened by air force and heavy artillery ac- tively participated in the hostilities against the Kurds at Mosul, Zakho and Dohuk. Moreover, as the Baathist regimes in Syria and Iraq attempted to unite the two states into one, a military alliance was signed in October 1963 in Damascus under which the integrated Syrian-Iraqi armed forces were supposed to be created. However, when these attempts failed in a short while and due to the fierce Kurdish resistance in the North, the Syrian troops were withdrawn from the Kurdish-populated provinces. Thus, owing to the Israeli support of the Iraqi Kurds, in turn, sizable Syrian forces were also diverted from the borders of Israel as well.Aryeh (Lova) Eliav, an Israeli Cabinet member, personally rode a mule over the mountains in 1966 to deliver a field hospital to the Kurds. The important defection of an Iraqi air force MIG pilot and his plane to Israel in August 1966, was effected with Kurdish help, while Israeli officers apparently assistedHospital established by Jewish-Israeli doctors in KurdistanMossad agents in Kurdistan-Iraq with “Shamo” the bear, which was given to them as a giftThe US and “Secretary of State Henry Kissinger wanted to do their ally, the Shah of Iran, a favor by supporting Iraq’s opponents – i.e. the Kurds. Furthermore, the US was also worried of the Soviet’s role in Iraq. In addition, they were supposedly promised oil of Barzanî as well; the Kurdish areas of Iraq were rich on oil. And last but not least, Kissinger wanted to support their close ally, Israel. If the Kurds attacked Iraq, the latter would have fewer resources to attack Israel with, during the Yom Kippur War.”Picture of the Shah of Iran with Kissinger1967The “British-born David Kimche, later deputy head of the Mossad, travelled on a non-Israeli passport to Kurdistan to appraise the situation. He was followed by Dov Tamari, a commando unit leader, who explored the idea of a permanent IDF training unit in the Kurdish mountains. This led to periodic six month stints for IDF personnel who trained peshmerga officers in the Marvad programme.Following the Six Day war, Israeli assistance for the Kurds increased considerably, as Israel realized that the ongoing Kurdish-Iraqi battles tied up Iraqi forces so they were not able to battle Israel instead. Slowly, captured Soviet arms made their way to Kurdistan.” (https://www.thejc.com/comment/analysis/a-movement-backed-by-israel-for-half-a-century-1.445216)Yaakov Nimrodi, the influential Israeli military attache in Tehran, served as the main channel. At times, Israeli advisers wore Iranian uniforms. In September 1967, Barzani again visited Israel and presented Moshe Dayan, the Israeli Defense Minister, with a curved Kurdish dagger. Barzani also found Israeli mortars superior to those he had been using and asked for more.1968–1970 Iraqi CoupBy 1968, Iraq went thru a coup that made Saddam Hussein Vice-President of Iraq. He began negotiations with the Kurds, and on May 11, 1968, promised the Kurds autonomy. According to the agreement made; “Kurdish and Arabic were to become the two official languages of Kurdistan; Kurdish participation in the government would become complete; officials in Kurdistan needed to be Kurds themselves or Kurdish speaking; and the Vice President had to be a Kurd.” ( Israel once supported the Kurds – but then left them in the lurch ) Unfortunately, however, Saddam reigned on the May 11, 1970 agreement, and he made several attempts at assassinating Mullah Mustafa Barzanî and his son and successor, Idris Barzani who ultimately died of a heart attack later on (1944–1987).Saddam Hussein, first became Vice-President of Iraq, then President, then permanent Dictator of IraqAfter being betrayed by Saddam, the Kurds resumed their fight, but this time the Kurds were backed by Iran, Israel and the United States.1973 Yom-Kippur WarDuring the Yom Kippur War in October 1973, in which Syria and Egypt were attacking Israel, only one Iraqi unit was able to participate in the Arab-Israeli war. The rest of the Iraqi units were busy fighting Barzanî in Iraq. The Kurds attacked Iraqi soldiers on Israeli demand.” Hence, Israel sent units to train and arm Kurdish Peshmerga fighters. (The precarious Kurdish-Israeli relationship, post-Kirkuk - Atlantic Council)1975 Algiers Accord:By 1975, Saddam came to the realization that “parts of the Iraqi territory by the Shatt ul-Arab border demarcation had to be given to Iran in order to prevent further Iranian support of the Iraqi Kurds”;“If we don’t give away the southern part of the country to Iran, we will lose the northern (Kurdish) part,” Saddam allegedly stated.On March, 1975 , Algerian President Houari Boumédiènne oversaw negotiations between Iran and Iraq in an agreement that would be called “The Algiers Accord”.In this Accord, Iraq and Iran outlined the borders between the two countries. In addition, Iran would stop supplying the Kurds of Iraq with weapons in return for “the transfer of Iraqi territory to Iran—especially half the width of the Shatt al-Arab, the river through which ships could sail to a number of major Iranian ports.”Israel's aid to the Kurds was being transferred through Iran, so Iran's decision also prevented the continuation of Israeli aid to the Kurds (the only other possible route being Turkey which was also hostile to the idea of a Kurdish autonomy in northern Iraq as a dangerous precedent for the Kurds in eastern Turkey, as well as being hostile to any type of Kurdish nationalism).“Iran also requested that the CIA and Mossad end the military support of the Kurds. Most of the people thought that after the end of international support, the Iraqi government would negotiate with the Kurds, but the Vice-Chairman at the time, Saddam Hussein, launched an aggressive campaign against the Kurds to “end them forever”. Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi interfered and succeeded in establishing a cease fire, but on 1 April, the Iraqi government relaunched the campaign intent on killing not only Kurdish fighters but Kurdish civilians as well, (a precursor to the Anfal Genocide). The Iraqi Army slaughtered thousands of Kurds with 100,000 Kurdish refugees fleeing to Iran with their leader, Mullah Mustafa Barzani. [16]1979 Rise of the Islamic Regime in IranAfter the establishment and formation of Israel as a country, Iran was one of the first Muslim-majority countries to acknowledge and recognize Israel’s sovereignty. After the 1953 Coup d’etat which installed Mohamed Reza Pahlavi, and subsequently his son, Shah Mohammed Pahlavi, relations between the two countries significantly improved. [1] Israel viewed Iran as a natural ally as a non-Arab power in the Middle East, and as a result,Israel had a permanent delegation in Tehran which thereafter led to permanent Ambassadors. After the Six-Day War, Iran supplied Israel with a significant portion of its oil needs and Iranian oil was shipped to European markets via the joint Israeli-Iranian Eilat-Ashkelon pipeline.[20] Brisk trade between the countries continued until 1979, along with many Iranian-Israeli military links and projects which were kept secret.Ayatollah KhomeiniAfter the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran led by the Ayatollah Khomeini, however, the newly formed Islamic Republic of Iran severed all diplomatic and commercial ties with Israel. The new Islamic regime also closed down the Israeli Embassy in Tehran, handing it over to the “Palestinian Liberation Front (PLO)”. The new government also refused to recognize the legitimacy of Israel as a state, and was sharply anti-Zionist. This stance only worsened with time, as a cold peace turned to outright hostility in the early 1990’s, leading Yitzhak Rabin’s government to adopt a more aggressive posture on Iran.[3]As a result, however, the Israeli Government began to use Iraqi Kurdistan not only as a base from which to obtain intelligence on Iraq, but also served as a base for Israeli intelligence collection on the Islamic regime.Anfal Genocide 1980–1988Al–Anfal, which is Arabic for “the spoils of war”, is the name of the eighth sura, or chapter, of the Quran. It tells a tale in which followers of Mohammed pillage the lands of nonbelievers. Some say the government chose the term for its campaign against the Kurds of northern Iraq because it suggested a religious justification for its actions.What was certain was that Saddam Hussein wanted to murder the Kurds, and began a mammoth campaign of civic annihilation, displacement and mass killing. The Anfal was unleashed against the Kurds from early 1980 through September 1988, and was tied to Saddam’s goals in the final phase of the Iran-Iraq war. Beginning with bombings of PUK and KDP targets, Saddam quickly moved to civilian targets. By 1987, Saddam had enlisted the help of his cousin, Ali Hassan Al-Majid (who was well known for his brutality) to take charge of the “Kurdish situation”. Also known by his nickname of “Chemical Ali due to his use of chemical warfare against the Kurds, Al-Majid began dropping poison gas not only on peshmerga targets but civilian villages.In early 1988, the Anfal began in earnest. A “directive from Baghdad ordered commanders to bomb rural areas of the north day or night “in order to kill the largest number of persons present.” The same directive declared that “all persons captured in those villages shall be detained and interrogated by the security services, and those between the ages of 15 and 70 shall be executed after any useful information has been obtained from them”. (A journey into the killing fields . PBS )182,000 Kurds were killed in the Anfal Campaign, with the village of Halabja alone sustaining 5,000 civilians dead. Hundreds of Kurdish villages were razed to the ground, with thousands of more Kurds forcibly relocated to different areas, including Iran. Mass graves uncovered thousands of people who had been shot and buried, and evidence uncovered in 2003 found that many Kurdish girls had been sold into slavery to Arab states by Saddam’s government. Thousands more Kurdish refugees fled the region and were given asylum in Europe, Australia or North America, forever being displaced from their homes.Civilian Kurds who were killed during the Al-Anfal campaign by chemical gasIraqi Kurds commemorate Halabja massacreDuring this time, Nahum Admoni, Mossad chief in the 1980s, described initiating assistance to the Kurds as “definitely humanitarian, an emotional aid to an oppressed minority”.1991 First Gulf WarAfter Kurdish forces assisted US- led Coalition forces in the First and Second Gulf Wars, Saddam responded with another brutal campaign against the Kurds in retaliation.All over the world, the Jewish organizations started a vigorous lobbying campaigns to aid the Iraqi Kurds and to exert pressure on Iraq to stop the persecutions (Barron, A. US and Israeli Jews Express Support for Kurdish Refugees // Washington Report of Middle East Affairs, May-June 1991, p.64.) Israel demonstrated its sympathy with the Kurds by means of large-scale supplies of medication and first-aid items through the Turkish-Iraqi border. This campaign was organized by the Israeli community of the Iraqi Jews. The Iraqi Jews even organized a large-scale demonstration at the residence of the Israeli Prime Minister Shamir during the meeting of the latter with the US State Secretary James Baker calling on the US government to defend the Kurds from reprisals ( Shahak, I. Open Secrets: Israeli Nuclear and Foreign Policies // (Experience Progress historia/shahak/opensec/07.htm)2003 Liberation of Iraq“Colonel Amir Goren, who served in the IDF for over 30 years and is now 53, describes himself as an “international anti-terrorism expert,” providing “tailored solutions” to “combat, physical and technological needs” for “public and private organizations” in several geographies. He led a group of Israelis who trained Iraqi Kurdish security forces and Peshmerga from 2004-2006, working as a subcontractor for an American company that sought to build the KRG’s security capacity. His tasks included the training of special forces and training and developing security for Erbil international airport.Goren’s team was 90 percent Israeli: all IDF veterans with an average age of 30-40. There were “several tens” of Israelis working in Kurdistan under Goren, handpicked by him. He said that his men were the only Israelis he was aware of operating in Iraq at the time. Some had served under him in the IDF, and others were selected based on their skills, CVs, and a test Goren provided gauging their intelligence, academic abilities, loyalty and trustworthiness.Goren used a fake identity in Kurdistan, claiming to be born of a Turkish Muslim father and Bulgarian Christian mother, and—like the rest of the Israelis in his team—never revealed himself as a Jew or Israeli. (The remaining 10 percent of his group were mainly from Britain and South Africa: They also used fake names, but acknowledged their background.) He did not bring a passport with him and held none during his stay, instead using a “special document.” In response to a question about whether clearance was specifically granted for this by KRG officials, he replied: “The people who should know that, knew that.” He chose not to reveal how he entered Kurdistan, or whether he left and returned during his time there.When asked what impressed him most about the Kurdish security forces, Goren replied: “Their personal motivation. They believed in their country, they were dedicated to their goal. I was impressed by their striving for independence and desire to connect to the rest of the world.”2012In January 2012 the French newspaper Le Figaro claimed that Israeli intelligence agents were recruiting and training Iranian dissidents in clandestine bases located in Iraq’s Kurdish region. A year later The Washington Post disclosed that Turkey had revealed to Iranian intelligence a network of Israeli spies working in Iran, including ten people believed to be Kurds who reportedly met with Mossad members in Turkey. This precarious relationship between Israel and Turkey—along with the risks and costs to both sides—persists today.“2015 ISISEliezer Gheizi Safrir, Mossad’s station chief in Kurdistan in the 1970’s:“Israeli politicians and cabinet members have often compared Iraqi Kurdistan as a mirror image of a pre-1948 Israel—championing self-determination and paralleling both states’ non-Arab identity—and saw Kurdistan’s friendship in line with Israel’s “alliance of the periphery” foreign policy agenda. Especially after a successful campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, Iraqi Kurdistan appeared the ideal destination for Israel to stave off Iran’s growing ‘Shia crescent’ and fragment centralized Arab efforts”.(The precarious Kurdish-Israeli relationship, post-Kirkuk - Atlantic Council)“On the level of economic strategy, Israel granted critical support to the KRG by buying Kurdish oil in 2015, when no other country was willing to do so because of Baghdad’s threat to sue. KRG Minister of Natural Resources Ashti Hawrami even admitted to the arrangement, saying that to avoid detection Kurdish oil was often funneled through Israel. Iraq’s Oil Minister, Husayn Shahristani, repeatedly inquired as to the nature of the KRG’s dealings with Israel and the Mossad, to which KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani said he wanted to reply: “Are you the Minister of Oil or of Intelligence?”*I would like to note that while Germany did the lion’s share of taking in Yezidi Kurdish refugees as well as trauma victims (women and children who had been sold as sex slaves or “cubs of the caliphate”), Israel also initiated a program to help, in Israel as well as Iraq:““We began working in Iraq a month after the Islamic State invaded, in September 2014,” said Yotam Polizer, co-chief executive officer of IsrAID. “And we immediately understood that the thing we could help most with was in the field of trauma treatment and psychological help, for which there was enormous need.”Over the past few years, the organization has sent some 20 Israeli experts with dual citizenship to Iraq to help treat these psychological wounds.Two years ago, the organization was contacted by three members of Bar-Ilan’s faculty – Dr. Yaakov Hoffman, a clinical psychologist and researcher, Prof. Amit Shrira, a psychologist and Prof. Ari Zivotofsky, a brain researcher. All were studying trauma among Yazidi women, and Zivotofsky had even visited Iraq.They proposed offering training in treating complex PTSD to people who deal with the traumatized population. Their plan was to adapt a therapy method known as STAIR, which was developed by Prof. Marylene Cloitre of California.Thus was born a joint venture that, with Mirza’s help, brought 15 young women from Iraq for training in Israel. The semi-secret operation required complex preparations, including giving the Foreign Ministry detailed information about each of the women months in advance.“We worked for a year and a half to build the infrastructure for this and learn about Yazidi culture,” Hoffman said. “We tried to build an optimal model for effective training in these situations, but in the end, the people undergoing the training aren’t psychologists and mental health experts. So we can’t know what contribution the training will really make.”Dr. Mordechai Kedar, of Bar-Ilan University in Israel, “What happened to the Kurds will happen to Israel. The Kurds fought ISIS, sacrificed their soldiers and people, and were thrown to the wolves once they were not needed. That is exactly what the world’s nations will do to Israel once it extricates them from the Iranian problem. Why not? The immediate interests of each and every country and not the moral rights of the Kurds and the Israelis are what makes the world go round.”The Kurds, particularly the Kurds in Iraq, have actually had a long relationship with Israel. However, the Kurds have always been fearful of being called “Zionists” by the Arab and/or Islamic nations due to the fact that it could be used to justify (at least in the Muslim nation’s eyes) more genocides/massacres against the Kurds in order to “get even” with Israel. Dictators like Saddam or even Assad who espoused pan-arabism and forced arabization would have used the Israeli-Kurdish relationship as fodder for increased operations against the Kurds. Fearful of this, the relationship was kept covert until 2003, when the shadow of Saddam no longer hung over Kurds. Of course, today those who want to vilify Kurds still make ludicrous claims that “Israel only helps the Kurds because they want to make a second Israel in the Middle East”.However, the relationship is mutually beneficial for both countries.The “Kurdish factor has always played a special role in the geo-strategy of Israel after the establishment of the Jewish State. The Kurdish-Israeli relations are a major element of Israel’s policy in the Near and Middle East, and effective leverage to exert pressure on Iraq (and to a less extent, Syria) in order to detract the attention of the Baghdad government and to prevent its active intervention into the Arab- Israeli conflict. At the same time, it should be noted that the historical and cultural nearness of the Jews and Kurds determined by a strong and numerous Jewish community in Iraq believed to be the oldest in the world contributed to the close con- tacts between Israel and the Kurds. Despite the exodus of nearly the whole community, nity from Iraq to Israel, the Iraqi Jews have retained their uniqueness, traditions and culture, and to a great extent determined the policy of Israel towards the Kurds, as well as Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and Iran. The Kurdish community of Israel also made its contribution to this matter, although to a limited extent.” (Minasian, S. http://www.noravank.am/upload/pdf/256_en.pdf )JEWISH/ISRAELI LEADERS WHO HAVE SPOKEN OUT IN SUPPORT OF THE KURDS, AS WELL AS FOR SUPPORT OF THE 2017 REFERENDUMGolda Meir: Henry Kissinger recalled in his memoir that when he served as secretary of state between 1973 and 1977, Israel appealed “for additional support for the Kurds” and that Golda Meir actively campaigned for Barzani, trying to persuade Kissinger to support Barzani’s party in taking over Iraqi Kurdistan.Eliezer Tsafrir, (former Mossad station chief in Kurdish northern Iraq who is now retired from Israeli government service) said the secrecy around the ties had been maintained at the request of the Kurds:"We'd love it to be out in the open, to have an embassy there, to have normal relations. But we keep it clandestine because that’s what they want,” he told Reuters.Amos Gilad: "Our silence - in public, at least – is best. Any unnecessary utterance on our part can only harm them (Kurds),” senior Israeli defence official Amos Gilad said on Tuesday.Shimon Peres: "The Kurds have, de facto, created their own state, which is democratic. One of the signs of a democracy is the granting of equality to women," Peres said. (Israel tells U.S. Kurdish independence is 'foregone conclusion' )Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman in Paris:"Iraq is breaking up before our eyes and it would appear that the creation of an independent Kurdish state is a foregone conclusion," Lieberman's spokesman quoted him as telling Kerry.Maj. Gen. (ret.) Amos Yadlin, (Executive Director for INSS and former Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Military Intelligence), highlighted that “Kurds were the only force fighting IS as their highest priority.”Ehud Olmert (former Prime Minister of Israel) reiterated Israel’s support for the people of Kurdistan and said his country would continue to be a friend of the Kurds.“Well, needless to say, Israel has been friendly and a sympathizer of the Kurdish situation for many, many years,” Olmert told Kurdistan 24 during a Jerusalem Post Conference in New York over the weekend.“I had the privilege of meeting with top Kurdish leaders when I was Prime Minister,” he said, “and I hope that these relations will continue and the support of Israel will continue for the Kurdish needs and aspirations.”Israel Katz (Netanyahu’s intelligemce Minister: The issue at present is to prevent an attack on the Kurds, extermination of the Kurds and any harm to them, their autonomy and region, something that Turkey and Iran and internal [Shia] and other powers in Iraq and part of the Iraqi government want,” Israel Katz, told Tel Aviv radio station 102 FM on Friday.Israeli Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked: on Kurdish sovereigntyIsraeli minister calls for Kurdish statehoodBenjamin Netanyahu: "(Israel) supports the legitimate efforts of the Kurdish people to achieve their own state.””“With respect to the Kurds, they are a warrior nation that is politically moderate, has proven they can be politically committed, and is worthy of statehood.”“It is upon us to support the international efforts to strengthen Jordan, and support the Kurds’ aspiration for independence,” Netanyahu said. The Kurds, he said, are a “fighting people that have proven political commitment and political moderation, and they’re also worthy of their own political independence.”Israeli General Yair Golan, Former IDF Deputy Chief: “I think the Kurds are, by nature, a moderate element with a positive influence on the surrounding people. And from my personal perspective, the Kurdistan Workers Party is not a terrorist organization,” he said during the event at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.*one person tried to claim that Bibi “knocked down” Yair Golan’s comments right away and the reason isn’t because he doesn’t agree, but because Israel doesn’t want to risk antagonizing Turkey. The same reason why Israel — along with other countries, including the United States — has refrained from formally recognizing the Armenian genocide over fears of angering Turkey, which they need to keep in NATO.Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrey Karlov said that his country does not consider the Kurds in Syria or the PKK terrorists: ““We understand Turkey’s concerns with regard to global terrorism. Especially after the terrorist attack in Ankara the other day.” Karlov told Russian news agency Ria Novosti on Saturday. “But neither the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) nor the Democratic Union Party (PYD) are considered terrorist organizations by either Russia or the United Nations Security Council,” (https://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/turkey/19102015)Guess what happened to Andrey Karlov? He was shot dead in Turkey during a press conference. Just as conveniently, the assassin was shot dead by other Turkish police. Just like the murder of Tahir Elçi, which the Turkish government claimed was carried out by “Pkk Terrorists”. Terrorists shot him alright, in the form of three Turkish police officers who orchestrated the attack in a way so that they would not be seen as responsible in the footage. Evidence of that can be found here; Forensic Architecture , New Report: 'Rights Lawyer Tahir Elci Shot by Turkish Police' In Turkey, everything and anything that happens is because of “Pkk”. They literally get scapegoated for anything and everything. Now Erdogan claims its Gulen and PKK together, which is even more ludicrous, considering they oppose each other.But Bibi would have to avoid antagonizing Turkey as the relationship with the two countries was very strained after the Flotilla incident.(Haim Malka)Turkish-Israeli relations have been on life support since the December 2008 Gaza War. Since then, there have been few high-level political discussions, and the bilateral agenda, outside of military sales, has been limited. Turkey no longer views Israel as a strategic asset, and 2010 was the first year Turkey did not request Israeli assistance in Congress on the Armenian genocide issue. Even if diplomatic ties are mended down the road, the fact remains that Turkey’s government appears to have embraced Israel’s arch foes, Iran and Hamas. Rather than a potential mediator, Turkey has effectively become a party to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Given such diverging interests, it is likely that the Gaza flotilla incident, which the Turkish government indirectly supported, will intensify the long and painful break in Turkish-Israeli relations.Bibi’s statement was : ““Israel condemns all terrorism in Turkey and expects that Turkey will condemn all terrorist attacks in Israel,” Netanyahu said after a deadly bombing in Istanbul in December. “The fight against terrorism must be mutual. It must be mutual in condemnation and in countermeasures, and this is what the state of Israel expects from all countries it is in contact with, including Turkey.” (Rebuffing former top general, Netanyahu says Kurdish PKK a terror group)“Israel opposes the PKK and considers it a terrorist organization, in contrast to Turkey, which supports the terrorist group Hamas,” he said while on a state visit to Argentina. “While Israel is opposed to any kind of terrorism, it supports the legitimate means of the Kurdish people to obtain their own state.”(Rebuffing former top general, Netanyahu says Kurdish PKK a terror group)This basically means that Netanyahu hopes by denouncing Pkk that Turkey will denounce Hamas and other groups carrying out attacks in israel which is a joke, considering there are Hamas bases in Turkey run by the Turkish government.However, after Erdogan denounced Israel for “attacks against Palestinians” and claimed “Israel Using Same Methods as Nazis on Palestinians in Gaza, Erdogan Says (Israel using same methods as Nazis on Palestinians in Gaza, Erdogan says ) Bibi’s response was : “I am not used to receiving lectures about morality from a leader who bombs Kurdish villagers in his native Turkey, who jails journalists, who helps Iran get around international sanctions, and who helps terrorists, including in Gaza, kill innocent people,” said Netanyahu.Gideon Sa’ar has also urged Israel to support Kurdish independence, saying that; “they have proven themselves over decades to be a reliable strategic partner for us.” And again, on the day of the referendum in late September, “I hope that if there is a majority for independence, Israel will be the first country to recognize Iraqi Kurdistan.”Notable Kurdish-IsraelisMoshe BarzaniMoshe BarazaniBarazani joined Lehi at an early age, following in the footsteps of his brother. Initially, he was a member of Lehi's youth division and posted propaganda leaflets, but later joined the fighting force. He participated in numerous sabotage operations, laying mines to destroy British vehicles and taking part in railway sabotage.While awaiting execution in the Central Prison in Jerusalem's Russian Compound, he met Irgun fighter Meir Feinstein, who had also been sentenced to death. On April 21, 1947, shortly before their scheduled executions, they committed suicide with an improvised grenade which had been smuggled inside a hollowed-out orange. The two embraced each other with the live grenade lodged between them. The story of Feinstein and Barazani became a celebrated tale in Israel.Syrian (Rojava) Kurds:I have written much less about the Syrian Kurds or Rojava Kurds, simply because of the fact that the Rojava has only recently established a federalist state and begun working with the West.Even more unfortunately, they are being heavily threatened not only by Assad, but by Turkey as well. Turkey’s goal is to eliminate the YPG/YPJ, and their tactics have been endless. At this point in time, I don’t want to get into details about American/French/Israeli/German/Canadian or any country's Support for the Rojava Kurds. This type of information at the current time is highly sensitive. But I will say this: it is in the benefit of all civilized nations that Rojava succeeds.

Dhyan ChandDhyan Chand ( 29 August 1905 – 3 December 1979) was an Indian field hockey player, who is widely considered as the greatest field hockey player of all time.[1] Chand is most remembered for his extraordinary goal-scoring feats, in addition to earning three Olympic gold medals (1928, 1932, and 1936) in field hockey, during an era where India was the most dominant team in Hockey.Known as “The Wizard” for his superb ball control, Chand played his final international match in 1948, having scored more than 400 goals during his international career.[2]​Dhyan Chand was born in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh in a Rajput family.[3][4] He was the elder brother of another playerRoop Singh. His father Sameshwar Dutt Singh was in the British Indian Army, and he played hockey in the army. Dhyan Chand had two brothers - Mool Singh, and Roop Singh. Because of Sameshwar Dutt's numerous army transfers, the family had to move to different cities and as such Chand had to terminate his education after only six years of schooling. The family finally settled in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, India. Being in the military, Dhyan's father got a small piece of land for a house.Young Chand had no serious inclination towards sports, though he loved wrestling. He stated that he did not remember whether he played any hockey worth mentioning before he joined the Army, though he said that he occasionally indulged in casual games in Jhansi with his friends.Chand joined the Indian Army at the age of 16. The Hindi word Chand literally means the moon. Since Dhyan Singh used to practice a lot during the night after his duty hours, he used to wait for the moon to come out so that the visibility in the field (during his era there were no flood lights) improved. He was hence called "Chand", by his fellow players, as his practice sessions at night invariably coincided with the coming out of the moon.Between 1922 and 1926, Chand exclusively played army hockey tournaments and regimental games. Chand was ultimately selected for the Indian Army team which was to tour New Zealand. The team won 18 matches, drew 2 and lost only 1, receiving praise from all spectators. Following this, in the two Test matches against the New Zealand squad, the team won the first and narrowly lost the second. Returning to India, Chand was immediately promoted toLance Naik.After successfully lobbying for reintroducing field hockey in the Olympics, the newly formed Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) made preparations to send its best possible team for the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics. In 1925, an Inter-Provincial Tournament was held to select India's national field hockey team. Five teams participated in the inaugural nationals - United Provinces (UP), Punjab, Bengal, Rajputana and Central Provinces. Chand got permission from the Army to play for the United Provinces team.In its first game in the tournament. Dhyan Chand as the centre-forward, and Marthins, their inside-right, were particularly happy in their understanding of each other. Dhyan Chand attracted much attention by his clever stickwork. His penetrating runs and judicious passes seemed to assure for him a position in the team that is to take part in the Olympic Games.Quite early in the game, it became evident that Dhyan Chand was again at his best. In combination with Marthins he took the ball away to the right and Marthins did well to give him a good pass. Quick as lightning, Dhyan Chand shot a goal. The ball struck one of the defenders' stick and went into the net, giving goalkeeper Collie no chance. A goal within 3 minutes of the start was more than what the most optimistic of the UP supporters could expect. At the interval, UP led by three goals to nil.On their part, Rajputana put every ounce of their efforts to score. The UP goal had more than one narrow escape, but were the winners of a fine exhibition match. UP 3 - Rajputana 1.Buoyed by the success of the Tournament, it was decided that it would be held every two years. After two more trial matches between various hopefuls, the Olympic team (including Chands as center-forward) was announced and assembled in Bombay. Center-half Broome Eric Pinniger was selected as the captain. The IHF was initially low on funds since the provinces of Bombay, Madras and Burma had turned a deaf ear to their financial appeal, but they managed to scrape enough money. The Olympic team then played a match against the Bombay XI, and amazingly lost 3-2, even though Singh scored both his team's goals. With a quiet send-off, the team left for England on 10 March, to play 11 matches against local sides as well in the Folkestone Festival, winning all. It was also said that the Great Britain did not send a team in 1928 Amsterdam olympics after their national team was defeated by the Indian team at Folkestone. This is best cited in Kapur's book "Romance of Hockey" where a despatch of H. Sutherland Stark, London representative of "Sports", a magazine of Lahore, tells the story better than any other comment : "For reasons it is difficult to understand the English Hockey Association have taken up a very stiff attitude towards Indian Hockey in recent years and have repeatedly been twitted about it by even their own supporters. The Editor of a leading sports newspaper described them to me as an intensely conservative body, but there seems to be something more than conservative behind their unwillingness apparently ever to meet India ina full international encounter" [5] Finally, on 24 April, the team arrived in Amsterdam to embark on a tour of the Low Countries. In all the pre-Olympic matches against local Dutch, German and Belgian teams, the Indian team won by large margins.In the 1928 Amsterdam Summer Olympics, the Indian team was put in the division A table, with Austria, Belgium, Denmark and Switzerland . On 17 May the Indian national hockey team made its Olympic debut against Austria, winning 6-0, with Chand scoring 3 goals. The next day India defeated Belgium 9-0; however Chand only scored once. On 20 May, Denmark lost to India 5-0, with Chand netting 3. Two days later, he scored 4 goals when India defeated Switzerland 6-0 in the semi-finals.The final match took place on 26 May, with India facing the home team of the Netherlands. The Indian team's better players Feroze Khan, Ali Shaukat and Kher Singh were on the sick list and Chand himself was ill. However, even with a skeletal side, India managed to defeat the hosts 3-0 (with Singh scoring 2), and the Indian team won its country's first Olympic gold medal. Keeper Richard Allen created a unique record of not conceding a single goal. Chand was the top scorer of the tournament by a large margin, scoring 14 goals in 5 matches. A newspaper report about India's triumph said,[citation needed]“This is not a game of hockey, but magic. Dhyan Chand is in fact the magician of hockey.”On returning to India, the team was received by thousands of people at the Bombay harbour, compared to the three people who had seen them off.Posted in Waziristan in the North-West Frontier Province (now in Pakistan) with his new 2/14 Punjab Regiment, Chand was cut off from the IHF, which was by now controlled by civilians. The Inter-Provincial Tournament was being held to select the new Olympic team; the IHF wrote to the Army Sports Control Board to grant Singh leaves to participate in the nationals. His platoon refused. Chand received news that he had been selected by the IHF for the Olympic team without any formalities. The rest of his teammates however, had to prove their skills in the Inter-Provincial Tournament, which was won by Punjab. As such, seven players from Punjab were selected for the Olympic team. Apart from Chand, Broome Eric Pinnigar, Leslie Hammond and Richard Allen were the other 1928 Olympians retained in the team. Chand's brother Roop Singh was also included in the squad as a left-in. Lal Shah Bokhari was selected as captain.The Olympic team then played practice matches in India before heading for Colombo. In two matches in Ceylon, the Olympic team beat the All Ceylon XI 20-0 and 10-0. Wrote one newspaper on the first match,[citation needed] "Perfection is perilous, for it tempts the gods. For once, this was proved wrong for even the god of weather paid tribute to the genius of the Indian players. Rain clouds, which had threatened to ruin the game, vanished into the blue, and thousands of spectators spent a happy hour marvelling at the incomparable artistry of the Indian team."The India team set sail for San Francisco on 30 May, and arrived on 6 July. They reached Los Angeles three weeks before the opening ceremony of the Olympics, which took place on 30 July. On 4 August 1932, India played its first match against Japan and won 11-1. Chand, Roop Singh, Gurmit Singh each scored thrice, and Dickie Carr once. In the final on 11 August, India played against hosts USA. India won 24-1, a world record at that time, and once again clinched the gold medal. Chand scored 8 times, Roop Singh 10, Gurmit Singh 5 and Pinniger once. In fact, Chand along with his brother Roop, scored 25 out of the 35 goals scored by India. This led to them being dubbed the 'hockey twins'.One Los Angeles newspaper wrote,[citation needed] "The All-India field hockey team which G. D. Sondhi brought to Los Angeles to defend their 1928 Olympic title, was like a typhoon out of the east. They trampled under their feet and all but shoved out of the Olympic stadium the eleven players representing the United States."The team then embarked on a tour of the United States. They played a match on 20 August against a United States XI, almost the same team that they had faced in Los Angeles. Even after loaning its second keeper Arthur Hind, for a half, the team won 24-1.After setting sail from New York, the team arrived at England. The then embarked on a hectic tour, playing nine matches in various countries in a fortnight, commencing on 2 September. They played four internationals-against the Netherlands, Germany, Czechoslovakia and Hungary. The team then reached Ceylon and India, playing a number of matches to pay for their expenses. At the end of the tour, India had played 37 matches, winning 34, drawing 2, with one abandoned. Chand scored 133 of the 338 Indian goals.In India he is often referred to as 'Hockey ka Jaadugar' with translates to "Magician of the game of Hockey". It is also rumored Chand used to practice ball control by sprinting along the length of railway tracks while balancing the ball on the track rail.Captaincy and 1936 Berlin Summer Olympics[edit]Indian hockey captain Dhyan Chand at 1936 Berlin OlympicsIn 1933, Chand's home team, the Jhansi Heroes participated in and won the Beighton Cup, which he considered the most prestigious of Indian hockey tournaments. Later, he would state,[citation needed]“If anybody asked me which was the best match that I played in, I will unhesitatingly say that it was the 1933 Beighton Cup final between Calcutta Customs and Jhansi Heroes. Calcutta Customs was a great side those days; they had Shaukat Ali, Asad Ali, Claude Deefholts, Seaman, Mohsin, and many others who were then in the first flight of Indian hockey.I had a very young side. Besides my brother Roop Singh, and Ismail, who played for the Great Indian Peninsular Railway in Mumbai, I had no other really great player in the team. But I had a team which was determined to do or die. It was a great match, full of thrills, and it was just opportunism that gave us the victory. Customs were pressing hard and our goal was at their mercy. Suddenly I broke through and from midfield gave a long through pass to Ismail, who ran with Jesse Owens' speed half the length of the ground. A misunderstanding occurred between the Customs left-half and the goalkeeper, and Ismail, taking every advantage of it, cut through and netted the only goal of the match. We felt very proud of our triumph.”In Kolkata, the Heroes also won the Lakshmibilas Cup tournament, which was open only to Indian teams. In 1935, they successfully defended their Beighton Cup title, though lost the subsequent year.In December 1934, the IHF decided to send a team to New Zealand in the new year. Chand and his brother were immediately selected. When the Nawab of Manavadar declined to play, Chand was appointed captain. In the subsequent tour, the team played a total of 48 matches on this tour, with 28 in New Zealand and the remainder in India, Ceylon and Australia. India won every match, scoring 584 goals and conceding only 40. Of these 48 matches, Chand played 43 and scored a total of 201 goals.Upon returning to India, Chand resumed his duties in the barracks. In December 1935 the IHF decided to stage the Inter-Provincial tournament to select the Olympic team. Chand was again denied permission to leave his platoon, though once again he was selected without formalities. The final team assembled in Delhi on 16 June and played against the Delhi Hockey XI. Incredibly, they lost 4-1. After this inauspicious start, the team went on a successful tour of the subcontinent, finally departing for Marseilles on 27 June. They arrived on 10 July, and after an uncomfortable journey in third-class compartments, reached Berlin on 13 July. On 17 July, the Indian team played a practice match against Germany and lost 4-1. As such, manager Pankaj Gupta informed the IHF that Ali Dara had to be sent immediately to replace the out of form Mirza Masood.On 5 August, India won its first match against Hungary 4-0. India won the rest of the group matches against USA (7-0, with Chand scoring 2 goals) and Japan (9-0, with Chand scoring 4). On 10 August, Ali Dara arrived. Their fourth match was the semi-final against France, whom they defeated 10-0, with Chand scoring 4 goals. Meanwhile, Germany had beaten Denmark 6-0, beaten Afghanistan 4-1 and in the play-offs, had defeated the Netherlands 3-0. Thus, India and Germany were to clash in the 1936 Berlin Olympics field hockey final on 15 August.Dhyan Chand scoring a goal against Germany in the 1936 Olympics hockey finalOn the morning of the final, the entire team was nervous since they had been defeated the last time they had faced Germany. In the locker room, Pankaj Gupta[who?] produced a Congress tricolour. Reverently the team saluted it, prayed and marched onto the field. The German team was successful in restricting the India side to a single goal until the first interval. After the interval, the Indian team launched an all-out attack, easily defeating Germany 8-1, incidentally the only goal scored against India in that Olympic tournament. Chand top-scored with 3 goals, Dara scored 2 and Roop Singh, Tapsell and Jaffarone each. Describing the game, the Special Correspondent of The Hindu wrote,[citation needed]“Every member of the team was feeling the strain of the defeat to the Germans in the practice match, and no one was in his usual self. I never saw a hockey team from India, where the game is definitely of a superior standard compared to the rest of the world, being so obsessed on the eve of the match. The players were nervous as to what the result of the match would be, which was heightened by the feeling that the burden of the country's honour was on their shoulders.The game was played at a fast pace and was packed with thrilling incidents. The Germans undercut and lifted the ball, but the Indian team countered with brilliant half-volleying and amazing long shots. Twice Dara attempted to score but was declared offside. Dhyan Chand discarded his spiked shoes and stockings and played with bare legs and rubber soles and became speedier in the second half.The vigorous German attacks were brilliantly saved by Allen and Tapsell. The goal scored by Weiss of Germany was the only goal scored against the Indians throughout the tournament. The whole Indian team put up a splendid display. Dhyan Chand and Dara impressed by their combination, Tapsell by his reliability and Jaffar by his tremendous bursts of speed.”There have been many erroneous media reports over the years claiming that Dhyan Chand scored 6 goals in India's 8-1 victory over Germany in the 1936 Olympic final. However, Major Dhyan Chand in his autobiography titled “Goal!” published in 1952 by Sport & Pastime, Chennai, writes as follows:“When Germany was four goals down, a ball hit Allen's pad and rebounded. The Germans took full advantage of this and made a rush, netting the ball before we could stop it. That was the only goal Germany would score in the match against our eight, and incidentally the only goal scored against India in the entire Olympic tournament. India's goal-getters were Roop Singh, Tapsell and Jaffar with one each, Dara two and myself three.”The record for most goals by an individual in an Olympic final has belonged to Balbir Singh, Sr. another famous Indian hockey hero since the 1952 Helsinki Olympic games. He set this record by scoring 5 goals in India's 6-1 victory over the Netherlands for the gold medal win. The previous holder of this record was England's Reggie Pridmore with his 4 goals in England's 8-1 victory over Ireland in the 1908 Olympic final.International Hockey Federation records also attribute only 3 of the 8 goals to Dhyan Chand in the Berlin Olympic final.The final was included in the Leni Riefenstahl film on the 1936 Olympics, Olympia. Overall, in 3 Olympic tournaments, Chand had scored 33 goals in 12 matches.East African tour and final tournaments[edit]After returning from Berlin, Chand joined his regiment. Between 1936 and the commencement of the War in 1939, he largely confined himself to army hockey, with one visit to Kolkata to take part in the Beighton Cup tournament in 1937. After the Beighton Cup, Chand spent four months in a military camp in Pachmarhi to attend military classes. Later, he was promoted to Lieutenant.Towards the closing phases of the war, Chand led an army hockey team which toured around the battlefields in Manipur, Burma, the Far East and Ceylon. When the war ended in 1945, Chand decided that the Indian hockey team needed new young players. In 1947, the IHF was requested by the Asian Sports Association (ASA) of East Africa to send a team to play a series of matches. The ASA made a condition that Chand should be included in the team. Once again, Chand was chosen as captain.The team assembled in Bombay on 23 November 1947, and reached Mombasa on 15 December and played 9 matches in British East Africa winning all. Chand, though now in his forties, still managed to score 61 goals in 22 matches.After returning from the East African tour in early 1948, Chand decided to gradually phase out his involvement in 'serious hockey'. He played exhibition matches, leading a Rest of India side against state teams and the 1948 Olympic team which defeated Chand's side 2-1, even though an aging Chand scored his side's lone goal. Chand's last match was leading the Rest of India team against the Bengal side. The match ended in a draw after which the Bengal Hockey Association organized a public function to honor Chand's services to Indian hockey.Last days[edit]In 1951, Captain Dhyan Chand was honored at the National Stadium—with Dhyan Chand tournament. Satinder Mullick remembers that Dhyan Chand took him and children of Capt. Kashmira Lal, Sports secretary of Army Hockey Federation.[citation needed] Dhyan Chand was staying in Jodhpur Mess. He was admired by all at the National Stadium.[citation needed]In 1956, at the age of 51, he retired from the army with the rank of Major. The Government of India honored him the same year by conferring him the Padma Bhushan (India's third highest civilian honour).[6]After retirement, he taught at coaching camps at Mount Abu, Rajasthan. Later, he accepted the position of Chief Hockey Coach at the National Institute of Sports,Patiala, a post he held for several years. Chand spent his last days in his hometown of Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, India.Dhyan Chand died on 3 December 1979 at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi.[7] He was cremated at the Jhansi Heroes ground in his hometown, after some initial problems in getting clearance. His regiment, the Punjab Regiment, accorded him full military honours.Legacy[edit]​This section's tone or style may not reflect the encyclopedic tone used on Wikipedia. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for suggestions. (May 2013)Dhyan Chand statue at Sipri hill, JhansiDhyan Chand Sports Stadium at JhansiEven today, Dhyan Chand remains a legendary figure in Indian and world hockey. His astounding skills have been glorified in various apocryphal stories and anecdotes. A number of such these revolve around the fact that Singh had a magical control over dribbling the ball. 29 August, Chand's birthday, is celebrated as National Sports Day in India. The President gives away sport-related awards such as the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna Award and Dronacharya Award on this day at theRashtrapati Bhavan, India.The Union Minister of India gives away 20th National Award 2012, namely Gem of India, to the magician of hockey i.e. Major Dhyan Chand. The award was received by his son Ashok Dhyan Chand (hockey Olympian himself) on behalf of his late Hon'ble father; award was given by Journalist Association of India under the flagship of Journalists Federation of India, Sirifort Auditorium, New Delhi, India, on 22 September 2012.India's highest award for lifetime achievement in sports is the Dhyan Chand Award which has been awarded annually from 2002 to sporting figures who not only contribute through their performance but also contribute to the sport after their retirement. The National Stadium, Delhi was renamed Dhyan Chand National Stadium in 2002 in his honour.[8]He scored over 1000 goals in his career, from 1926 to 1948.[9]Astro-turf hockey pitch, at the Indian Gymkhana Club in London has been named after Indian hockey legend Dhyan Chand.[10]In 1956, at the age of 51, he retired from the army with the rank of Major. After he retired he coached for a while, then settled in his beloved Jhansi. However,The last days of Dhyan Chand were not very happy, as he was short of money and was badly ignored by the nation. Once he went to a tournament in Ahmedabad and they turned him away not knowing who he was. He developed liver cancer, and was sent to a general ward at the AIIMS, New Delhi.Once, while playing a hockey game, Major Dhyan Chand was not able to score a goal against the opposition team. After several misses, he argued with the match referee regarding the measurement of the goal post, and amazingly, it was found to not be in conformation with the official width of a goal post under international rules).[11]After India played its first match in the 1936 Olympics, Dhyan Chand's magical stickwork drew crowds from other venues to the hockey field. A German newspaper carried a banner headline: 'The Olympic complex now has a magic show too.' The next day, there were posters all over Berlin: Visit the hockey stadium to watch the Indian magician Dhyan Chand in action.[11]Legend has it that the Fuhrer was so impressed by Dhyan Chand's wizardry with the stick that he offered the Indian a chance to move to Germany and the post of Colonel in his army, which the Indian is said to have declined with a smile.[citation needed]During a match with Germany in the 1936 Olympics, Dhyan Chand lost a tooth in a collision with the particularly aggressive Germany goalkeeper Tito Warnholtz. Returning to the field after medical attention, Dhyan Chand reportedly told the players to "teach a lesson" to the Germans by not scoring. The Indians repeatedly took the ball to the German circle only to backpedal.[12]Cricket world's legend Don Bradman and Hockey's greatest player Dhyan Chand once came face to face at Adelaide in 1935, when the Indian hockey team was in Australia. After watching Dhyan Chand in action, Don Bradman remarked "He scores goals like runs in cricket"[11]Residents of Vienna, Austria, honoured him by setting up a statue of him with four hands and four sticks, depicting his control and mastery over the ball.[13]A tube station has been named after him in London, along with 358 other past and present Olympic heroes, in the run-up to the Games, starting on 27 July 2012. The Transport for London has brought out a special 'Olympic Legends Map', detailing all 361 tube stations. Only six stops have been named after hockey players, with the three Indians - Dhyan Chand, Roop Singh and Leslie Claudius - cornering the majority.[14]In the Netherlands, the authorities broke his hockey stick to check if there was a magnet inside.Dhyan Chand was among the nominees considered for India's highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna for 2014 and there was support for it.[15][16][17] The award was then given to Sachin Tendulkar and C.N. Rao.[18] The family members of Dhyan Chand were disappointed with government decision.[19] The RTI was filed which suggested that the Prime Minister's Office had ignored the recommendation from sports ministry on giving the award over Sachin Tendulkar.[20]

From their websiteBecoming a Special Agent Takes DedicationThe Special Agent Selection System (SASS) is a mentally and physically challenging process designed to find only the most capable applicants. However, those who make it through the process become part of an elite team that keeps our country safe.Major DutiesThe FBI Special Agent (SA) position requires significant commitment and dedication. SAs must:Adhere to strict standards of conduct, especially in maintaining honesty and integrity.Be available for worldwide assignment on either a temporary or a long-term basis.Work a minimum of 50-hours per week, which may include odd hours, and be on-call 24/7, including holidays and weekends.Maintain a high-level of fitness necessary to effectively respond to life-threatening situations on the job.Carry a firearm and be willing to use deadly force, if necessary.Be willing and able to participate in arrests, execution of search warrants, and other dangerous assignments, all of which pose the risk of personal bodily harm.What to Know Before ApplyingFBI Employment Requirements for All PositionsMust be a U.S. CitizenMust be able to obtain a Top Secret-SCI clearanceBe in compliance with the FBI Drug PolicyReview the full list of FBI employment requirements under Are You Suitable?Employment Requirements for the Special Agent PositionTo be eligible for the FBI Special Agent position, applicants must meet the following minimum qualifications at the time of application:Be between 23 and 37 years of age*Have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree from a U.S accredited college/university**Have at least three years of full-time (36+ hours per week) professional work experience***Possess a valid driver's license and 6 months of driving experienceMeet the Special Agent physical fitness standards (see the Physical Requirements tab below)*FBI Special Agents must apply prior to their 36th birthday. In addition, they must be appointed and assigned to the FBI Academy no later than the month of their 37th birthday to achieve 20 years of service prior to the mandatory retirement age of 57. The FBI may disqualify applicants at any time during the process if it is determined that they will reach age 37 before appointment.Potential Exceptions: Applicants with prior Federal law enforcement service or preference eligible veteran may qualify for an age waiver.Non-Preference Eligible Candidates – Applicants with prior/current service in certain federal LEO and other federal positions (must be supported by an SF-50) do not require an age waiver as long as they will have amassed 20 years of service by age 57.Preference Eligible – Applicants who are members of the Armed Forces (rank O-3 or below) and are over the age of 36 at the time of application may apply no sooner than one year prior to their separation from the military. During initial processing, applicants will be required to submit a Statement of Service from his/her Armed Service branch, with an expected discharge/release date and Character of Discharge (i.e. honorable or general). Preference-eligible applicants must successfully complete all phases of the Special Agent Selection System (SASS), pass the background investigation, and submit a qualifying DD-214 before requesting an age waiver. Without a qualifying DD-214, an age waiver will not be considered.Please Note: Applicants who retire at the rank of Major, Lieutenant Commander, or higher (O-4 or higher), are not eligible for preference in appointment unless they are disabled veterans. Applicants in this category must submit a DD-214 at the time of application, along with the SF-15 and appropriate/current Veterans Affairs disability rating letter. This does not apply to Reservists who will not begin drawing military retired pay until age 60.More information can be found on our Veterans page.**For ANY foreign degree, applicants must provide a foreign equivalency certification at the time of application. No processing will take place absent that documentation.Potential Exception: If a bachelor’s degree is not from a U.S. accredited college, but your advanced degree is from a U.S. accredited college, the FBI will accept the accreditation of your advanced degree and no other documentation is required.***For Special Agents, professional work experience is defined as having work experience in:Any occupation that requires a college degree, and may include specialized training and/orAny position that includes managerial, supervisory, or leadership and/orProfessional Athletics such as a full-time career participating in Major League sports (NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, etc.) or International Competitions (Olympics)Summer jobs, internships, seasonal positions, temporary employment and/or volunteer work are generally not considered in the professional work experience category.In addition to the definition above, the FBI determines if an applicant meets the professional work experience requirement based on the general requirements needed to perform Special Agent duties.Potential Exceptions:Applicants with a master’s and/or advanced degree(s) require two years of full-time work experience at the time of application.For eligible veterans, part-time, internships (paid or unpaid), or Reserve/Guard duty count toward total work experience.For all applicants, volunteer work (such as Peace Corps) that requires full-time participation, paid full-time graduate work programs, and full-time fellowships may be considered as professional work experience.All exceptions will be made on a case-by-case basis.Education & SkillsWhile the FBI encourages applicants from all backgrounds to become Special Agents, we are currently looking for Special Agent applicants with skills in the following areas:Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)Foreign LanguagesLawEmergency MedicineCertified Public Accountants (CPAs)DetectivesMilitary (specifically Special Forces, Explosives, WMD and Intelligence Experts)Pilots (helicopter, fixed-wing)Core CompetenciesFBI Special Agents are required to adhere to strict standards of conduct and exemplify the FBI’s Core Competencies listed below. The Open-Ended Questions are designed to understand your background and fit with these Competencies. As such, you are STRONGLY encouraged to provide as much information as possible, and use the Situation, Action, Result format to describe the situation, the actions you took, and the resulting outcomes.CollaborationCommunicationFlexibility/AdaptabilityInitiativeLeadershipOrganizing and PlanningProblem Solving/JudgmentPlease click here for the definitions of the FBI Core Competencies.Why Fitness MattersSpecial Agents must be mentally and physically prepared for their work. The FBI requires every applicant to pass the official Physical Fitness Test (PFT) and meet the vision and hearing requirements outlined below. While physical standards are demanding, all of our minimum requirements are achievable. Ensure you are well-rested and in your best shape before attempting any physical fitness test.The Physical Test and RequirementsThe Physical Fitness Test (PFT)The PFT consists of four events in the following order, with no more than five minutes of rest between each event. A passing score requires a cumulative 12 points*, with at least 1 point in each of the four events. Click here for our PFT guide and scoring scales.Maximum number of continuous sit-ups in one minute.Timed 300-meter sprint.Maximum number of continuous push-ups (untimed).Timed 1.5 mile run.*Tactical Recruitment Program (TRP) applicants also must do pull-ups as part of the test and achieve a total of 20 points, with at least 1 point in each of five events. However, meeting these physical requirements will not automatically qualify candidates as eligible TRP applicants. For more information on the Tactical Recruitment Program, view the Other Opportunities for Special Agents section.Watch our Video on Correct Techniques for the PFT.Please Note: Applicants may conduct physical training, including “mock PFTs,” with each other and with current FBI employees, except those who participate in the SASS or the special agent hiring process.Failing the Physical Fitness TestApplicants are offered three opportunities to pass the official PFT within one year after passing Phase II. If the applicant failed his or her initial post-Phase II PFT, the applicant’s remaining PFT opportunities will be scheduled at any time that is mutually agreeable to the applicant, applicant coordinator and/or the physical fitness advisor. Applicants who do not pass the PFT within the one-year time limit will be deactivated and are no longer eligible for the Special Agent position.Vision and Hearing RequirementsApplicant’s distant visual acuity, corrected or uncorrected, must meet Bureau standards, which are 20/20 in one eye and no worse than 20/40 in the other eye.Applicants with distant visual acuity greater than or equal to 20/100 require medical documentation of successful soft contact lens use for at least one year without significant problems or adverse effects.Applicants with recent refractive surgery involving the creation of a corneal flap must wait six months following surgery and complete an ophthalmology evaluation to document complete healing prior to applying for employment.Color-vision deficient applicants may be considered if they successfully complete a Farnsworth D-15 color vision test administered at the field office. Please note that the use of color-corrective lenses is not allowed.Applicants who have an average hearing loss greater than 25 decibels (ANSI standards) at 1,000, 2,000, and 3,000 Hertz should have no single value above 35 decibels. Additionally, no single reading may exceed 35 decibels at 500 Hertz or 45 decibels at 4000 Hertz. These hearing-deficient applicants may be offered further testing available only at select Bureau field offices.The Medical ReviewDuring the application process, each applicant’s medical history is thoroughly reviewed on an individual basis. Applicants may provide medical information from their personal physicians. However, the FBI Chief Medical Officer will make the final decision based on his knowledge of the demands of the position and each applicant's medical documentation.The FBI is committed to treating all applicants fairly and equitably in all aspects of the selection process.Apply NowThe Application ProcessThe Special Agent Selection System (SASS) is designed to identify the best candidates to become FBI Special Agents. Please keep in mind that the process typically takes at least one year or longer to complete. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of this process, please contact your applicant coordinator. The standard email address for a field office is [fieldoffice][email protected] (i.e. [email protected]).Phase I and Phase II Testing – No Shows: Applicants faced with emergency situations that prevent them from attending their scheduled testing must contact their applicant coordinator as soon as possible. Once a candidate is informed of and accepts a scheduled date for testing, he or she may not cancel without incurring a “fail” for that test, unless documentation indicating a medical need to reschedule is submitted. Nonmedical extenuating circumstances (e.g., a death in the family or a military obligation) will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis by the applicant coordinator and New Agent/Analyst Testing and Selection Unit (NAATSU) management.Please Note: If you are currently employed, please be aware that you may be scheduled for testing during your regular working hours (i.e. midday/midweek), and sometimes in a short timeframe. Also, you may receive no more than a two-week notice to report to the FBI Academy.For more information on the SASS, please see the Special Agent Candidate Information Packet.Before You ApplyEnsure that you meet ALL requirements, and consider the following items:Are you willing to wait approximately one year before being hired?Are you willing to relocate to one of the FBI's 56 field offices? Is your family prepared for relocation?Are you willing to accept the Special Agent salary and pay scale?Are you willing to be on probation for the first two years of employment?If you are currently on active duty in the military, you must be within one (1) year of completing your service before submitting your application.Application Steps and TimelineStep 0: Requirements & Field Office LocationBefore applying to the Special Agent position, please ensure you meet all eligibility and physical requirements. Candidates must report to a field office for interviews and testing several times throughout the application process; they are responsible for their own travel to and from the field office. Applicants who reside overseas must be available for travel to the U.S. for testing and processing at an FBI field office at their own expense, and may choose a field office that is most convenient for them.Step 1: Online ApplicationIn the online application, candidates will be required to answer a variety of eligibility and suitability questions, as well as submit their scores to a self-Physical Fitness Test (PFT). All of the requirements for the self-PFT are the same as the official PFT requirements outlined in the Physical Requirements tab above. A PFT guide and self-PFT worksheet are available in the Documents and Information tab below. Candidates are encouraged to come back to the online application even after a failure of the self-PFT, until they are able to pass and submit the application.Please Note: Scores MUST be submitted within 30 days of starting the application. In addition, you MUST actually perform the self-PFT according to protocol and provide accurate results. DO NOT estimate. Possible lack of candor will preclude you from further consideration.Once applicants have passed the eligibility and suitability questions and self-PFT, they should be prepared to provide information about specialized skills and professional experiences.The FBI will evaluate your answers to the Open Ended Questions in your application against the FBI’s core competencies listed below. Please ensure that they can be fully identified in your application. Examples must be work-related, thoroughly detailed and illustrative considering the definitions of the FBI Core Competencies.CollaborationCommunicationFlexibility/AdaptabilityInitiativeLeadershipOrganizing and PlanningProblem Solving/JudgmentApply NowStep 2: Phase ICandidates who meet initial pre-screening and eligibility requirements will be invited to take the Phase I Test.The Phase I test is a three hour computerized exam consisting of five different assessments: Logic-Based Reasoning, Figural Reasoning, Personality Assessment, Preferences and Interests, and Situational Judgement.Please Note: Applicants will only be offered two opportunities to pass. Additionally, applicants are limited to 2 invitations before being permanently discontinued without a valid reason. Applicants must wait a minimum of 90 days from the expiration date before a new invitation will be issued.More information on Phase I is available in the Test Preparation tab below.Step 3: Meet and GreetUpon passage of Phase I testing, applicants will be invited to a Meet and Greet. Applicants visit their local field office to receive more information about the Special Agent Selection System and are evaluated by the field office’s recruitment team.Step 4: Headquarters Review ProcessUpon completion of the Meet and Greet, applicants will be reviewed by an internal FBI hiring board and rated on their individual competitiveness.Step 5: Phase IIBased on their competitiveness, selected candidates will be contacted to complete Phase II, the next step of the SASS. Applicants will only be offered two opportunities to pass.More information on Phase II is available in the Test Preparation tab below.Step 6: Physical Fitness TestUpon passing the Phase II tests, candidates must take an official Physical Fitness Test (PFT) – a rigorous physical examination administered in accordance with strict FBI protocol – within 14 days of passing. Upon successful completion of the PFT, candidates are extended a Conditional Appointment Offer (CAO).More information on the PFT is available in the Physical Requirements tab above.Step 7: Background InvestigationAfter receiving and accepting a CAO, candidates will undergo a thorough FBI background investigation.All applicants must be eligible to hold an FBI Top Secret security clearance in order to become a Special Agent. This investigation reviews an applicant’s actions, relationships, and experiences beginning with the present and working back 10 years or to their 18th birthday.The background investigation for Special Agents includes a Personnel Security Interview (PSI), polygraph exam, drug test, fingerprinting, and medical exam.Step 8: Basic Field Training Course (BFTC)Once candidates have successfully completed the background investigation and passed a PFT within 60 days of their scheduled start date, they will receive orders to report to the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia to begin training as New Agent Trainees (NATs). This Basic Field Training Course (BFTC) lasts 21 weeks, and candidates are typically notified two to four weeks in advance of their class date. NATs must successfully complete all portions of the BFTC in order to be hired as Special Agents.See more information on the FBI Academy here.Step 9: GraduationUpon successful graduation from the BFTC, Special Agents report to their assigned field office on their specified date. During the first two years on duty, Special Agents spend 18 months in a probationary period in which they gain hands-on experience working in different specialties within the FBI’s jurisdiction.More information on the Special Agent position is available in the FAQs tab below.The FBI does not endorse any test preparation materials beyond what can be found on FBIJOBS.Click here to access the SASS Phase I Test Preparation Guide.Phase IPhase I testing takes approximately three hours to complete. Candidates will take five different tests which measure the critical thinking and reasoning skills required to perform the Special Agent job, as well as background experiences that indicate whether or not the Special Agent work environment would be a good fit.Logic Based ReasoningThe Logic-Based Reasoning questions consist of a short paragraph followed by a multiple choice question which requires interpretation of the information in the paragraph. Based on the information provided, you must choose the correct answer from five multiple choice options. This section contains 11 questions.Preparation Tips: Thoroughly read through the descriptions, statements, and questions. Read carefully and attentively. Use the information from the description ONLY; do not introduce outside information to make the final selection. Pay attention to words such as MUST or ONLY and answer accordingly.Figural ReasoningThe Figural Reasoning questions contain images that include a sequence of shapes and patterns. The goal is to determine the next picture that logically fits within the pattern. Patterns may follow the three rows or columns, and may involve any aspect of the figures, including shape, color, number of shapes or sides, or other characteristics. This section contains 9 questions.Preparation Tips: Comprehensively review the sequenced shapes and patterns. Take a moment to determine the arrangement. Recheck your selection before moving on to the next sequence.Personality AssessmentThe Personality Assessment consists of five pairs of statements on each screen. Use the slider to indicate the degree to which you agree with one of the two statements. Please note that this test is adaptive, so your responses on the previous questions will be used to determine the next set of questions you are presented with. This section contains 100 statements.Preparation Tips: Read each statement completely and carefully. At times, it may be hard to choose because you agree or disagree with both statements. This is a normal part of the assessment. This section does not contain any explanatory answers, as the answers are based on your personal characteristics.Preferences and InterestsThe Preferences and Interests questions consist of a statement and a rating scale with five response options ranging from “Strongly Agree” to “Strongly Disagree.” Choose the response option that most closely indicates your level of agreement with the statement. This section contains 37 questions.Preparation Tips: Do not dwell on the statements. Answer with the response option that reflects your agreement with the statement. Try not to “read into” the statement. Remember to choose the option that most accurately describes you.Situational JudgementThe Situational Judgement questions begin with various scenarios, followed by five response options. The scenarios describe situations and problems that you are likely to encounter in a typical work environment. Each response option will propose a different way of responding to the scenario. This section contains 19 questions.Preparation Tips: Do not dwell on the statements or scenarios. Answer with the statement that closely reflects how it applies to you. Try not to “read into” the statement. Remember to choose the option that you believe is best for you.Phase IIPhase II testing takes approximately 2.5 hours to complete. The test is split into two parts: an oral interview and a written exam.Oral InterviewThe oral interview is one-hour long and is administered by a panel of three Special Agents.The panel uses standardized scoring criteria to measure the Special Agent Core Competencies as well as your honesty and integrity.Tips:Be yourselfThe evaluators will be taking notes during the interview to assist them in documenting the results. Do not let this distract you.Provide detailed information when answering the interview questions. Do not be modest in your responses. To provide the best examples of your skills and abilities, draw from all of your life's experiences (not just the most recent ones).Remember that the interview panel knows no information about you beyond your name.Keep your answers concise and specific—answers that are too lengthy will detract from your ability to complete the interview within the required timeframe.Do not make assumptions about what the evaluators are seeking. The interview instructions are straightforward. There are no "trick" questions.Study your resume and be able to speak about how your experiences match with the Special Agent Core CompetenciesWriting ExerciseThe written portion of the Phase II test is a 90 minute exam meant to test applicants’ ability to analyze data and prepare a comprehensive report. At the start of the exercise, applicants will be given a set of background materials to use for this exercise.There is no preparation manual available for the Writing Exercise.Tips:Read instructions carefully and make sure you understand what the exercise requiresBe detailed and thorough in your reportUse only the facts provided—do not make up additional factsFollow grammatical rules and spell words correctlyWrite legibly—responses cannot be evaluated if they cannot be readRequired DocumentationTake a moment to review all of the items below. Your application will not be processed until you have provided all of the required documentation.For all Special Agent applicants:Unofficial college transcript(s)For applicants with current or prior federal work experience:SF-50 - Notification of Personnel ActionFor current or former members of the armed forces (one of the following):DD-214, Member 4 or Service 2 copyStatement of Service (required if not yet separated from the military)For veterans:DD-214, Member 4 copy or Service 2 copyFor disabled veterans:DD-214, Member 4 copy or Service 2 copyVA letter, dated within one yearSF-15 (optional)Please Note: When scanning and uploading your document(s), make sure that all pages are readable and facing upright in the same direction. DO NOT upload any picture files (JPEG, TIFF, PNG, BMP).Other DocumentationSpecial Agent Candidate Information PacketCandidates should refer to this packet for more detailed information on the Special Agent Selection System.Phase I Test Preparation GuideCandidates should refer to this guide for information, including sample test questions, to prepare for the Phase I test.Physical Fitness Test (PFT) GuideCandidates may use this guide for information, criteria and scoring scales for the Physical Fitness Test (PFT).PFT Self-Evaluation FormCandidates can use this for reference during their training. Candidates who applied for the Special Agent position before the self-PFT was required in the online application, will fill out this form and return to their Applicant Coordinator when instructed.Certificate of Wellness (FD-875)Candidates who have successfully passed the Phase II test should complete this form when invited to the PFT upon instruction from their Applicant Coordinator.Report Of Medical History FormPlease download and fill out the attached form only when directed by your Applicant Coordinator. This form should not be downloaded unless at the explicit direction of your Applicant Coordinator, and does not need to be included with your application.Additional information on documents to include with a candidate's application can be found on the How to Apply page.How do I apply to become a Special Agent?View the Application Process tab.What are the preliminary standards for the Special Agent position?Applicants to the Special Agent position must meet all requirements outlined on our Eligibility page, as well as those outlined in the Eligibility tab on this page.Are waivers available for applicants 37 and older?Per Public Law 93-350, enacted July 12, 1974, the Attorney General and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) set the date immediately preceding one's 37th birthday as the last date for original entry on duty as a law enforcement officer in the Department of Justice.Waivers are available for preference-eligible veterans who have been discharged or released from active duty from the Armed Forces under honorable conditions (honorable or general discharge). The Member 4 copy of the DD-214, and in the case of service-connected disabilities, a copy of the SF-15 “Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference”, as well as other applicable documentation to confirm veteran’s preference eligibility, must be submitted at the time of application.Military retirees at the rank of Major, Lieutenant Commander, or higher, are not eligible for preference in appointment unless they are disabled veterans. This does not apply to Reservists who will not begin drawing military retired pay until age 60.Age waivers for preference-eligible veterans will be requested only after they successfully complete all phases of the SASS and have been favorably adjudicated/cleared for hire. Preference-eligible applicants must still pass all other components of the SASS, including the PFT and fitness for-for-duty requirements.More information can be found on our Veterans page.Is there a waiver of the Bachelor's degree if an applicant has military service?No. All Special Agent applicants must possess a minimum of a U.S. accredited bachelor's degree or advanced degree.Will having uncorrected vision or laser surgery disqualify me from applying for the Special Agent position?Special Agent applicants need to have at least 20/20 vision in one eye and not worse than 20/40 vision in the other eye. If an individual has a satisfactory history of wearing soft contact lenses for more than one year and is able to meet correction to 20/20 in one eye and no worse than 20/40 in the other eye, safety concerns are considered mitigated and applicant processing may continue.If an applicant has had laser eye corrective surgery, a six-month waiting period is required prior to beginning New Agents Training. Applicants must also provide evidence of complete healing by an ophthalmological clinical evaluation.The policy for color vision allows continuation of applicant processing if those who fail initial color vision screening are able to successfully complete the Farnsworth D-15 color vision test.How long does the FBI Special Agent application process take?The Special Agent application process generally takes at least one year and often longer, depending upon annual federal funding levels and hiring goals.The Special Agent Selection System (Phase I and Phase II Testing) is based on an applicant's individual http://competitiveness.In addition to the Phase I and II testing process, the physical fitness test, background investigation and medical evaluation will affect the length of the application process. Each of these items can take a considerable amount of time to complete if an applicant has lived in several areas, has extensive foreign travel or has held several jobs.For more information, visit our Eligibility page and OPM’s website to ensure all information needed has been gathered ahead of time.What kind of training do FBI Special Agents receive?All Special Agents begin the first 21 weeks of their career at the FBI Academy in Quantico, VA, where they participate in intensive training. During their time at the FBI Academy, trainees live on campus, participate in a variety of training activities and study a wide variety of academic subjects. The FBI Academy curriculum also includes intensive training in physical fitness, defensive tactics, practical application exercises and the use of firearms.Over the course of an Agent's career, the FBI provides additional training opportunities to keep him/her updated on the latest developments in the respective specialty fields.For more information on the FBI Academy, click here.Do I need to have a law enforcement or military background to apply to become an FBI Special Agent? Are certain degrees more desired by the FBI?No. Because of the breadth and scope of the FBI's mission, the FBI seeks candidates with a wide variety of backgrounds, not just law enforcement or military experience. The FBI seeks Special Agents with degrees/expertise in physical sciences, computer science, engineering, architecture, law, accounting and other disciplines that require logical analysis and critical thinking. We are also actively seeking Special Agents who are fluent in critical foreign languages, as well as those with experience in intelligence and counterterrorism work. Study a field you enjoy, and after that obtain experiences that will demonstrate your ability to master the Special Agent core competencies, specifically:CollaborationCommunicationFlexibility/AdaptabilityInitiativeLeadershipOrganizing and PlanningProblem Solving/JudgmentDo I have to know how to shoot a gun to apply to be an FBI Special Agent?No, it is not necessary to have prior experience with firearms. All Special Agent trainees receive extensive training in the use and maintenance of firearms and related equipment. In many cases, the best Agent trainees are those with no prior firearms experience (since they do not have any ingrained habits).What are the physical fitness requirements to become an FBI Special Agent?Serving as an FBI Special Agent is a demanding job. A Special Agent is often placed in situations that test a person's physical capabilities. Therefore, all applicants for the Special Agent position must be in excellent physical condition with no disabilities that could interfere with firearm use, raids or defensive tactics. Learn more by viewing the Physical Requirements section.Are there different physical fitness requirements for women and men?Although female applicants/trainees take exactly the same Physical Fitness Test as their male counterparts, the scoring scale for each event is slightly different in order to account for physiological differences. Learn more by viewing the Physical Requirements.How are Special Agents assigned to offices, and how often are Special Agents rotated in their assignments?Newly appointed Special Agents are assigned to one of the FBI's 56 field offices or resident agencies based on the Bureau's current staffing and/or critical specialty needs. New Special Agents are given an opportunity to rank their desired locations. While consideration is given to these preferences, first office assignment is based upon the staffing needs of the FBI. All Special Agents are subject to transfer at any time to meet the organizational and program needs of the FBI. Special Agents accept the possibility of transfer as a condition of their employment.What is a typical day like for a Special Agent of the FBI?There is no such thing as a typical day for a Special Agent. One day you could be executing a search warrant and making an arrest, while the next you could be testifying in court. Your morning could entail catching up on paperwork in the office, while the afternoon could bring a meeting with a high-level source. No two days are ever the same for an FBI Special Agent.How does the background investigation process work?Due to the sensitive nature of the FBI's missions, all FBI positions require a Top Secret (TS) Security Clearance. Before employees can start work with the FBI, they must undergo an intensive background investigation that includes a polygraph, a drug test, credit and records checks and extensive interviews with former and current colleagues, neighbors, friends, professors, etc., covering the last 10 years or from their 18th birthday.Are there any automatic disqualifiers?Yes. Learn more here: FBI Automatic Disqualifiers.How much are FBI Special Agents paid?All new FBI Special Agents will earn salaries at the GL-10 [Special Base Rate for LEOs] pay grade. Applicants with no prior government service will earn a salary at the GL-10, step 1 pay level. Applicants with prior government service (including FBI professional staff) may be eligible to receive higher steps that are commensurate with their highest previous pay, but they will not enter at higher grades.During the Basic Field Training Course (BFTC), New Agent Trainees (NATs) will earn GL-10 salaries, plus locality pay for the Washington, D.C. area, plus availability pay (AVP), which is 25 percent of their basic pay (base plus locality). Upon graduation from BFTC and assignment to their first field offices, new SAs will be paid at the GL-10 pay level, plus the locality pay that applies to their first offices of assignment, plus AVP. OPM’s websitecontains current salary tables to allow employees to determine the locality pay rates for various areas of the country. Part-time Special Agents do not receive availability Future home of pay.as an FBI employee, a Special Agent also receives a variety of benefits, including group health and life insurance programs, vacation and sick pay and a full retirement plan.How will having a family affect my career as an FBI Special Agent?The FBI has several programs designed to help employees meet both their family and career goals. In addition to our normal annual and sick leave benefits, the federal Family and Medical Leave Act permits employees to take up to 12 weeks of leave without pay for medical exigencies, including the birth or adoption of a child.The FBI also offers a part-time program for Special Agents (agents must have completed the probationary period). This program allows an agent to work between 16 and 32 hours a week, providing extra flexibility to parents. In most instances, the part-time agent's revised work assignment will be determined in such a manner that appropriate consideration is given by the Division Head to the agent's level of investigative experience, specialized assignments, GS grade, other pertinent skills and the needs of the division.What are the opportunities for promotions and pay increases?Special Agents enter as GL-10 employees on the law enforcement government pay scale and can advance to the GS-13 grade level in a field, non-supervisory role. Special Agents can thereafter qualify for promotion to supervisory, management and executive positions to grades GS-14 and GS-15, as well as to the FBI Senior Executive Service.I want to be an FBI “Profiler.” Where do I begin the application process?The FBI does not have a job called “Profiler.” Supervisory Special Agents assigned to the National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC) at Quantico, VA, perform the tasks commonly associated with “profiling.” Despite popular depictions, these FBI Special Agents do not get “vibes” or experience “psychic flashes” while walking around fresh crime scenes. In reality, it is an exciting world of investigation and research — a world of inductive and deductive reasoning, crime-solving experience, and knowledge of criminal behavior, facts, and statistical probabilities.