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U.S. Synagogues Conducting Active Shooter Drills
(JTA) Ben Sales - Jewish congregations across the U.S. are drilling their members on how to act if an active shooter arrives at their doorstep. Some run active shooter scenarios during services. Others have trained a group of congregants in how to fight gunmen when they come through the door. Security measures range from locking doors and reinforcing windows to hiring armed security. Some congregations have encouraged members to carry handguns at services. Avi Abraham, an Israeli martial arts expert, has taught self-defense courses at 20 synagogues in the New York City area. Abraham teaches groups how to collectively pounce on a gunman from the side as he's entering a doorway, then to tackle him and take his weapon. "This is not business as usual," said Rabbi Neil Cooper of Temple Beth Hillel-Beth El in Wynnewood, PA. "We just cannot do it like that anymore. We live in a world where it no longer can be assumed that things are safe."