Profiling

I didn't realize it at the time, but the reason I was pulled aside and questioned in such detail on both entering and leaving Israel was because I matched one of their profiles for potential terrorists: women traveling alone. El Al (Israel's national airline) uses profiling in their security screenings, and if you fit one of these descriptions, apparently you can be detained for hours. Here is an excerpt from the U.S. Department of State Consular Information Sheet for Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza:

SAFETY AND SECURITY: Israel has strict security measures that may affect visitors. Prolonged questioning and detailed searches may take place at the time of entry and/or departure at all points of entry to Israel, including entry from the West Bank and Gaza. Travelers with Arabic surnames, those who ask that Israeli stamps not be entered into their passports, and unaccompanied female travelers have been delayed and subjected to close scrutiny at points of entry.

This Washington Post article sheds some light on the reasoning behind the focus on single women. This helps me understand a little better why I was considered with so much more suspicion than any of the other non-Israeli travelers around me. It is understandable, even necessary, but still, it's a scary experience to be targeted like that in the middle of the night, pulled out of line, and questioned so extensively.