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The Dancing Israelis

Five Israeli nationals arrested on September 11, 2001 after being observed filming and apparently celebrating the World Trade Center attacks from a position that required advance knowledge of the event — later identified by multiple sources as connected to Israeli intelligence.

FieldDetails
TypeIntelligence Operation / Foreknowledge Evidence
First Articulated ByEyewitnesses on 9/11; reported by ABC News (June 2002), The Forward (March 2002), and investigative journalists
Active PeriodSeptember 11, 2001 -- present (ongoing research)
Key ClaimFive Israeli men were positioned to film the WTC attacks before or as they began, were observed celebrating the destruction, and later stated on Israeli television that their purpose was "to document the event" — a statement that implies foreknowledge
Evidence RatingSTRONG EVIDENCE

Video Evidence​

Video clip shared in a thread discussing the Dancing Israelis. Source: @neckoffdawoods on X, April 16, 2026.

Ryan Dawson: Clarifying the Van Incidents and Secondary Explosions​

Ryan Dawson (@RyLiberty) discussing multiple 9/11 van incidents and secondary explosion witness testimony. Source: @RyLiberty on X, June 1, 2026.

Transcript Summary — Key Statements​

The video is a compilation of news footage and eyewitness accounts from 9/11 covering three related topics:

1. Secondary Explosions — WTC Lobby Witness Testimony

Multiple survivors and first responders describe explosions in the WTC lobby consistent with the secondary-explosions claim central to controlled demolition theories:

"The ladies that are with me were in the World Trade Center in the first building and escaped through the lobby where they believed there was a bomb in the lobby. And even the turnstile was burnt and was sticking up... As we were coming out, we passed the lobby. There was no lobby. So I believe the bomb hit the lobby first." — Eyewitness, from video compilation

"Is that a secondary explosion? Yes it was. Definitely secondary explosion." — On-site witness exchange, from video compilation

"The whole lobby collapsed on the lobby inside. Right in front of our eyes. It was so surreal, like a movie scene." — First responder, from video compilation

2. The George Washington Bridge Van (CBS2 News Report, 9/11/2001)

The video includes contemporaneous news broadcasts documenting a van with explosives stopped near the George Washington Bridge — a largely forgotten incident that day:

"Word late tonight that two suspects are in FBI custody after a truck load of explosives was discovered around the George Washington Bridge. That bridge links New York to New Jersey over the Hudson River." — News anchor, 9/11/2001 broadcast

"Two men are in custody tonight after being arrested at the George Washington Bridge with an entire truck load of explosives. The FBI has now put out a nationwide APB all points bulletin for a white Chevy van with New Jersey registration. Written on the back is Urban Moving Systems." — CBS2 News, 9/11/2001

This is the most explosive revelation in the video: a CBS2 broadcast on 9/11 itself reported that the FBI issued an All Points Bulletin for a white van with "Urban Moving Systems" written on the back — the same company that employed the five Dancing Israelis. This suggests the GWB van and the Meadowlands van may have been connected through the same front company, though they were separate vehicles.

3. Multiple Van Summary

Narration in the video states:

"Three Israelis, Yaron Shmuel, Oded Ellner, and Sivan Kurzberg were witnessed filming the burning of World Trade Center One. They were dancing, celebrating and posing for pictures as Americans burned to death behind them. There were at least two possibly three vans stopped by police on 9/11 and a fourth van spotted by a journalist. One had five individuals and traces of explosives. Another had two individuals and was packed with explosives. A third van got away and a fourth was possibly a diversion."

Note: The narration names only three of the five detainees as the "dancing" observers, consistent with Dawson's claim that not all five were celebrating.

Archival Van-Incident Footage (Steve Cameron Archive)​

Three additional archival clips, shared from a personal 9/11 media archive, document the multiple van incidents directly through contemporaneous police radio and live news broadcasts. Provenance is the uploader's personal archive and has not been independently verified; the clips are presented as documented broadcast and radio artifacts.

The "Mural Van" — NYPD Police Radio Transmission​

NYPD police radio audio from 9/11 documenting the "Mural Van" stopped on King Street. Source: @SteveCameronPr1 on X, June 20, 2026. Archived via IPFS CID Qmd3PVafGJ8Vnd4w6RVksQdfWBfqXHJRyjLQb81ecXHcVx.

This clip captures NYPD radio chatter describing a van that has received almost no mainstream attention — a vehicle painted with a mural depicting an airplane diving into the New York City skyline and exploding. According to the radio transmissions, the van was located on King Street between 6th and 7th Avenue:

"It's a big truck with a mural painted of an airplane diving into New York City and exploding... The truck is in between 6th and 7th on King Street... Two men got out of the truck, ran away from it. We got those two [under custody]." — NYPD police radio, 9/11/2001, from the archival audio

The radio traffic references the two men being taken into custody and a possible bomb in the vehicle. If accurate, this represents a fourth, distinct van — separate from the Meadowlands Urban Moving Systems van and the George Washington Bridge van — and one whose painted imagery of a plane striking the city would, by the account in the audio, imply preparation rather than coincidence.

ABC News Bulletin — FBI Responding to New Jersey Explosives Truck​

ABC News bulletin from 9/11/2001. Source: @SteveCameronPr1 on X, June 20, 2026. Archived via IPFS CID QmYeNBLMsGpxK6sVBWPCuUDnuhAa3LcaXrJCmqRjjdr9pM.

A short ABC News segment in which an anchor relays a report attributed to the NYPD and the FBI:

"The New York City Police Department has a report that the FBI is responding to New Jersey because a truck reportedly loaded with explosives has been stopped by authorities on the road there and the men with that truck have been detained. Members of the Joint Terrorist Task Force... are responding to question those people." — ABC News, 9/11/2001, from the archival broadcast

ABC News Coverage — George Washington Bridge Van with Explosives​

Extended ABC News coverage from 9/11/2001 featuring Peter Jennings, John Miller, and NYPD Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik. Source: @SteveCameronPr1 on X, June 20, 2026. Archived via IPFS CID QmYpnNxfQDrqts89YhB3jSzt4x6kpuTZTWF4bJpEWDrWU1.

This longer clip captures live ABC News coverage of the George Washington Bridge / New Jersey van incident as it was being reported in real time, including conflicting accounts that reporters worked to reconcile on air:

"Word late tonight that two suspects are in FBI custody after a truck load of explosives was discovered around the George Washington Bridge... enough explosives were in the truck to do great damage to the George Washington Bridge." — ABC News anchor, 9/11/2001, from the archival broadcast

"There was a van either on the New Jersey Turnpike or the Garden State Parkway... near the George Washington Bridge. There were two or three men who were in the van. The van was pulled over... law enforcers found tons of explosives inside of the van." — ABC News reporter Deborah [Ferry], 9/11/2001, from the archival broadcast

In the same broadcast, NYPD Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik declines to confirm the reports, saying the accounts had "not been confirmed" and were still being checked — illustrating how the van incidents were reported, then left unresolved in the official record. The footage corroborates the contemporaneous reporting referenced elsewhere on this page about vans with explosives stopped on 9/11.

Overview​

On the morning of September 11, 2001, a woman in an apartment building in Union City, New Jersey observed five men on the roof of a white van in the parking lot of her building, filming the World Trade Center and appearing to celebrate as the towers burned. She called the police, who issued a BOLO (Be On the Lookout) alert. The five men — Sivan Kurzberg, Paul Kurzberg, Yaron Shmuel, Oded Ellner, and Omer Marmari — were stopped and arrested later that day by East Rutherford, New Jersey police near Giants Stadium.

All five men were Israeli nationals employed by Urban Moving Systems, a moving company based in Weehawken, New Jersey, owned by Dominik Suter. The FBI investigation determined that the men were in the Doric apartment complex parking lot between approximately 8:50 AM and 9:03 AM — meaning they were positioned and filming after the first tower was struck (8:46 AM) but potentially before the second strike (9:03 AM).

The men were held for 71 days, during which they were interrogated by the FBI and reportedly failed polygraph tests. They were eventually deported to Israel in November 2001 for immigration violations. Upon returning to Israel, three of the men appeared on a television talk show where Oded Ellner stated: "Our purpose was to document the event." This statement — that their purpose was to document an event no one could have known about in advance — remains the most explosive aspect of the case.

Evidence & Documentation​

The Arrest​

The five men were observed by multiple witnesses at the Doric apartment complex parking lot in Union City, NJ, positioned on the roof of a white Urban Moving Systems van. Witnesses described them as filming the burning towers, with some witnesses reporting that the men appeared to be celebrating — high-fiving, hugging, and flicking cigarette lighters. One witness, Maria, called the police after observing what she described as celebratory behavior.

The BOLO was issued, and the van was stopped on Route 3 in East Rutherford at approximately 3:56 PM. At the time of the stop, Sivan Kurzberg, the driver, reportedly told the officers: "We are Israeli. We are not your problem. Your problems are our problems. The Palestinians are the problem."

FBI Investigation​

The FBI investigated the men under the code name "High Fivers." According to FBI documents partially released through FOIA:

  • The men had $4,700 in cash, box cutters, and multiple foreign passports
  • Maps were found with certain locations highlighted
  • Bomb-sniffing dogs reacted positively to the van
  • FBI radar records confirmed the men were at the Doric parking lot between 8:50 AM and 9:03 AM
  • At least two of the men (Paul Kurzberg and Sivan Kurzberg) reportedly failed polygraph tests
  • One of the men had photographs showing him holding a lit cigarette lighter in the foreground with the smoking WTC towers in the background

The FBI initially considered the men as suspected intelligence operatives. However, according to ABC News, the FBI "concluded that the five were conducting a Mossad surveillance mission and the potential suspect list was narrowed from approximately 30 to about five people."

The Five Men​

NameRoleDetails
Sivan KurzbergDriverMade the statement about Palestinians to arresting officers
Paul KurzbergReportedly refused to take a polygraph test for 10 weeks; eventually failed it
Yaron ShmuelPhotographed with cigarette lighter and burning towers
Oded EllnerMade the "our purpose was to document the event" statement on Israeli TV
Omer Marmari

"Our Purpose Was to Document the Event"​

Upon their return to Israel, three of the men — Ellner, Shmuel, and Marmari — appeared on the Israeli talk show Matzav Ha'uma (State of the Nation) in November 2001. Oded Ellner stated: "Our purpose was to document the event."

This statement is the single most significant piece of evidence in the case. If their purpose was to "document the event," they would have needed to know the event was going to happen. One cannot set up to document something that has not yet occurred unless one has advance knowledge.

Urban Moving Systems and Dominik Suter​

The five men worked for Urban Moving Systems, a moving company in Weehawken, NJ owned by Israeli national Dominik Suter. After the arrests, the FBI raided Urban Moving Systems' offices. According to ABC News, the FBI determined that the company was likely a Mossad front operation.

Dominik Suter fled the United States to Israel on September 14, 2001 — three days after the attacks and before the FBI could interview him further. He was placed on the FBI's suspect list. The business was shut down and the building vacated. Suter's name later appeared on the FBI's list of individuals sought for questioning.

The Broader Context: Israeli Intelligence Activity​

The Dancing Israelis case does not exist in isolation. It is part of a documented pattern of Israeli intelligence activity surrounding 9/11:

  • The DEA report documented approximately 140 Israeli intelligence operatives detained in the US in 2001, many posing as art students (see Mossad)
  • Israeli-owned Odigo messaging company employees received warnings 2 hours before the attacks (see Odigo Warning)
  • Fox News aired a 4-part investigation by Carl Cameron on the Israeli spy ring, then pulled it from their website (see Mossad)
  • The broader Israeli Foreknowledge / Mossad profile documents the full scope of these activities

The Multiple Van Incidents: Separating the Records​

A common oversimplification conflates all 9/11 white van incidents as a single event. Researchers, including 9/11 documentary filmmaker Ryan Dawson (@RyLiberty), have argued that there were at least four distinct van incidents on September 11, 2001 — and that conflating them obscures the full picture.

The most important distinction is between:

  • The Meadowlands/East Rutherford van (3:56 PM) — The Urban Moving Systems white van stopped on Route 3 near Giants Stadium. This is the van that contained the five Israeli nationals (Sivan Kurzberg, Paul Kurzberg, Yaron Shmuel, Oded Ellner, Omer Marmari). This is the core "Dancing Israelis" incident.

  • The George Washington Bridge van (approximately 10:47 PM) — Separately, on the evening of 9/11, New York City police received a report of a van on the George Washington Bridge with explosives. The NYPD issued a warning on police radio. Multiple news outlets initially reported the arrest of individuals in a van on the bridge. According to Dawson and other researchers, this is a categorically different incident involving different individuals, yet popular accounts have merged it with the Meadowlands van arrest.

Dawson's post stated: "It was 3 dancing Israelis (out of a group of 5 arrested later) it was 4 different vans not 1. The George Washington Bridge Van (10:47pm) is not the same van as the dancing Israeli's van taken to the Meadowlands (3:56pm)."

Additionally, Dawson noted that only 3 of the 5 arrested men were observed "dancing" or celebrating — the characterization of all five as "dancing Israelis" is an imprecision in the popular account.

Key revelation from archival news footage: CBS2 News reported on 9/11 that the FBI issued a nationwide APB (All Points Bulletin) for "a white Chevy van with New Jersey registration — written on the back is Urban Moving Systems." This broadcast, captured in the Ryan Dawson video compilation, directly connects the GWB van alert to the same company name as the Meadowlands van. Whether the GWB van was an Urban Moving Systems vehicle or whether this was a misidentification remains unclear in the public record. The CBS2 report has received almost no follow-up in the two decades since.

Note on sourcing: The GWB van incident and the APB for "Urban Moving Systems" were reported by CBS2 News in real time on 9/11. The detailed multiple-van breakdown is advanced by alternative media researchers. The official record focuses only on the five men stopped at East Rutherford.

The Forward Report​

The Jewish newspaper The Forward reported on March 15, 2002 that the FBI had concluded that at least two of the five Israelis were Mossad operatives. The article stated: "According to one former high-ranking American intelligence official, who asked not to be named, the FBI came to the conclusion at the end of its investigation that the five Israelis arrested in New Jersey last September were conducting a Mossad surveillance mission."

Key Figures​

  • Sivan Kurzberg, Paul Kurzberg, Yaron Shmuel, Oded Ellner, Omer Marmari — The five detained Israelis
  • Dominik Suter — Owner of Urban Moving Systems; fled to Israel on September 14, 2001
  • Christopher Bollyn — Journalist who extensively investigated the Dancing Israelis and Israeli intelligence connections to 9/11
  • Sibel Edmonds — FBI whistleblower whose broader testimony about foreign intelligence penetration provides context
  • Ryan Dawson (@RyLiberty) — 9/11 researcher and documentary filmmaker; produced War By Deception and other documentaries on Israeli intelligence connections; argues for distinguishing multiple separate van incidents on 9/11

Criticisms & Counter-Arguments​

  • ABC News reported that the FBI "concluded that the five Israelis had no foreknowledge of the attacks." However, this statement appears to conflict with the FBI's own classification of the investigation and the Forward's reporting that two were identified as Mossad operatives.
  • Israeli government — Israel has denied that the men were intelligence operatives, stating they were simply young Israelis working abroad.
  • Filming timing — FBI radar records place the men at the parking lot starting at 8:50 AM, which is after the first plane struck at 8:46 AM. The official position is that they, like many people, began filming after seeing the first impact — not before it.
  • "Document the event" translation — Some have argued the Hebrew statement was mistranslated or taken out of context, and that Ellner meant they documented the event as it was unfolding (after seeing the first strike), not that they had positioned themselves in advance.
  • Celebration claims — Some witnesses described the men as simply filming, not celebrating. The "dancing" description may be exaggerated.
  • Anti-Semitism concerns — Organizations including the Anti-Defamation League have characterized the Dancing Israelis story as anti-Semitic conspiracy theory. This project documents the factual record as reported by the FBI, ABC News, The Forward, and other mainstream sources.

See Also​

  • Israeli Foreknowledge / Mossad — The comprehensive profile of Israeli intelligence activities surrounding 9/11
  • Urban Moving Systems — The company that employed the five men, determined to be a likely Mossad front
  • Mossad — Israeli intelligence service and its alleged role in 9/11
  • Odigo Warning — Israeli messaging company employees warned 2 hours before the attacks
  • Christopher Bollyn — Journalist who investigated the Israeli connection and was arrested and exiled

Other Coverage Worth Reading​

  • Israeli Foreknowledge / Mossad: DEA documented 140+ Israeli operatives in the US, an Israeli company received warnings, and Fox News aired the story then deleted it.
  • Odigo Warning: Employees at an Israeli-owned messaging company received specific warnings two hours before the WTC attacks.
  • William Rodriguez: The last man rescued from the North Tower reported massive sub-basement explosions before the plane impact — omitted from the Commission report.
  • Coleen Rowley: FBI agent proved headquarters deliberately blocked the Moussaoui investigation — TIME Person of the Year for exposing the cover-up.

Sources​

This information was compiled by Claude AI research.

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