Peoria Mayor Jason Beck visits Israel

Mayor Jason Beck of Peoria recently visited war-torn Israel, touring areas devastated by the Hamas attacks. He described his experience in Israel as “hair-raising and humbling” and said he has seen “the worst of humanity.”

He is also the founder and CEO of Tyr Tactical, a body armor manufacturing company that donated dozens of protective vests and shields to the Israel Defense Forces. We welcomed Mayor Beck to Arizona Horizon to discuss the trip.

Mayor Beck visited Israel in early November and was there for eight days. He said he didn’t go as mayor, but instead as an individual.

“Every single person that I talked to, every single person that I went and had conversations with and sat down with were joyful that I was actually there,” Mayor Beck said. “They were joyful and actually very pleased that we were actually showing them support.”

Mayor Beck said most people who have gone to Israel during the conflict for a political nature are on the ground for less than 24 hours.

“They want to get in, take the photo-op, and get out,” Mayor Beck said. “They show support, in that nature, and I’d invite more people to do that, but I was there to actually try to make a difference.”

This was Mayor Beck’s sixth trip to Israel, including a trip last April that lasted 10 days.

“I have a deep love and respect for the Israeli people. Remember it’s not just the Jewish people who died on October 7; it’s also Jews, Christians and Arab Israelis that perished,” Mayor Beck said. “It was very important for me to go over there and actually see what had transpired. It looked like a scene from ‘The Walking Dead,’ in a lot of ways.”