Israel was included erroneously on a Department of Homeland Security terrorist watch list, a U.S. official said.

Gillian Christiansen, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement division of the department, said Israel’s recent appearance on a list compiled by the department’s office of the inspector general was a mistake.

The addition of Israel “was based on inaccurate information provided to the OIG during the course of its audit,” Christiansen said in a statement sent by email to JTA. “The U.S. does not and never has considered Israel to have links to terrorism, but rather they are a partner in our efforts to combat global terrorism.”

The list of 36 nations includes a number of other U.S. allies such as Turkey, Bahrain, Morocco and the Philippines. — jta