Interrogated at Israel airport for hours for nothing.

[ForVictory]

Let me first say Israel is a beautiful country and its people very friendly, however...
I got back from my 2 week vacation in Israel and I had a very unpleasant experience at Ben Gurion airport. I didn't say or do anything wrong for them to suspect me. I was just travelling alone. In the waiting room I noticed most people were middle eastern looking, also a Brazilian and a Dutch guy who had a Iranian stamp in his passport. And a very old Muslim couple from USA.
A woman interrogated me almost 3 hours. Before I even opened my mouth the lady (more a b#@! actually) told me she didn't have time for b##!@sit I was telling the truth about everything and yet she would sometimes interrupt me yelling "LIAR"!
She said, why I came to Israel, if I was going to the West Bank, If I knew any Palestinians etc. She checked my phone for my contacts, my pictures on it, all my emails and my messages. And then she claimed I had deleted some of them just before arrival! I was WTF!
I asked her to check my bags so they could see I had nothing to hide but they didn't! They just wanted to know what's inside my head! She asked why I don't have a Facebook account, and what it is I'm hiding.
Not even in Transnistria or Russia have I been treated like this.
After 3 hours I was allowed to enter Israel with a real dry mouth from answering all her questions. I have to say though Israeli people are very warm hearted and helpful people but its the bureaucracy that are run by racist paranoid bigots and I fear that one day they will pay the price for this.

I have always admired Israel to be able to stand in the mids of aggressive hostile neighbors but I cant help but feel a little animosity towards the state now.

[Aru]

I have always admired Israel to be able to stand in the mids of aggressive hostile neighbors but I cant help but feel a little animosity towards the state now.

Now you see how they're able to stand in mids of aggressive hostile neighbors and what you admired.

[Copperknickers II]

Seems like you ticked some kind of box for starting warning signals. Young men travelling alone into the Middle East at the moment are probably not very common, and some are joining IS. It seems overkill to search all your messages and accuse for for not having Facebook though. Still, customs officials are not known for their people skills. I went to Canada once with my mother and the guy asked her:

'Why did you bring this child here without your husband!'
Because he's away on business.
'What is the purpose of your visit.
Holiday.
'That is not what I asked you madam. What is the purpose of your visit.'
Holiday! We're visiting relatives.
'And what relatives are these?'

etc etc. These guys deserve some respect just for keeping up that level of hatred all day.

[Col. Tartleton]

They're just lucky they're wearing a uniform.

[Flinn]

It happened to me too, twice. I travel to Israel every two years for business, and in 4 times I've been there, twice they squeezed me like a lemon and twice they simply ignored me. I'm pretty much sure it all depends on the mood of the first person who speaks with you and of course on the level of alarm you might rise with your behaviour or appearance.

They take security very seriously in any case; it's annoying I know, but well as long as it ends there and don't have you lose your plane, it's nothing one can't bear (was fun for me, especially the second time )

[Vítor Gaspar]

I just wonder how does that work with checking people's cell phones and emails like it's nothing. I wonder whether that's legal - then again, Israel is ruled by a fascistoid government.

[Basil II the B.S]

The few people I know that travelled to Israel had the same experience.
There are a few things that instantly increase their suspiction levels to absurd: like you study politics or travelled in Muslim counties, prepare for pain.
You are lucky they didn't ask you any question about the Israeli-Palestianian conflict.
It's a police-state. The US is also going in that direction.

[Stavroforos]

I just wonder how does that work with checking people's cell phones and emails like it's nothing. I wonder whether that's legal - then again, Israel is ruled by a fascistoid government.

It's legal in most countries. Any country can deny entry to non-nationals for basically whatever reason it wants.

[ForVictory]

You are lucky they didn't ask you any question about the Israeli-Palestianian conflict.

Actually she did, I answered well I guess, since after this question she begun to loosen on me.

[Sir Hawkwood]

Israel uses profiling so I'm guessing the OP may be a Negro or an Arab? You should have asked for her number, tried to build some bridges and all that.

I had a real shtty experience in my homeland's airport. In the USA it wasn't too bad though, DHS searched my bags once and a few money declarations and that was it.

[AqD]

Does it have to do with how you look??