NYPD Plans to Post Police Overseas

The New York Police Department is considering putting cops in Canada, Europe and the Middle East in a global initiative to guard New York City from terrorism. Sources say the foreign assignments will be in London, Toronto, Lyon (France) and yet undetermined cities in Israel and Germany. The NYPD has sought cooperation from law enforcement agencies in these countries to post New York detectives there to gather intelligence. Veteran cops with well-rounded resumes would be selected for each post, and there may be a language requirement, reported the New York Daily News. Sources say analysts at NYPD headquarters have identified cops who speak Arabic and other languages like Farsi and Urdu, spoken in Afghanistan and Pakistan, which might aid in investigations. The plans are part of NYPD commissioner Raymond Kelly's international approach to terrorism. Kelly was a former vice president of Interpol, the international police organization. This would also be the first time New York City police have been assigned to Interpol. Kelly also created the NYPD's counter-terrorism bureau and widened the focus of the intelligence bureau putting David Cohen, once a top CIA operative, in charge. Five investigators from the bureaus flew to Israel to attend a seminar on prevention and detection of suicide bombers. The NYPD was the only local agency invited by the Israeli police. "We want to emphasize we're not looking to supplant anything that's going on in the federal government. This is to augment," said Kelly.