U.S. military police patrol Okinawa prefecture’s capital, Naha, Nov. 1, 2025. (Ryan M. Breeden/Stars and Stripes)
U.S. military police plan to resume their own street patrols on Okinawa in time for the New Year’s holiday, a month after a U.S. civilian was body slammed outside a bar, according to Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
U.S. patrols, unaccompanied by local police, may be back in Okinawa’s nightlife districts on the final days of 2025, according to a statement by the U.S.-Japan Joint Committee posted on the ministry’s website Friday.
Stars and Stripes could not verify Saturday that patrols had already begun.
USFJ commander Air Force Lt. Gen. Stephen Jost ordered the patrols paused and an investigation into the forceful detainment of Kareem El early on Nov. 22 by a U.S. military policeman who lifted El and slammed him to the pavement outside a bar on Gate 2 Street.
Two videos of El’s arrest posted online ignited a social media backlash. USFJ spokesman Air Force Col. John Severns, in a Dec. 12 email to Stars and Stripes, said El was stopped by the patrol, which “approached him solely because they believed he was a U.S. servicemember.”
The joint committee acknowledged the mistake.
Police “mistakenly detained an American citizen who did not have [status of forces agreement] status,” according to the statement. SOFA sets out the rights and responsibilities of U.S. military personnel, Defense Department civilian employees, contractors and their families in Japan.
Japan’s government “recognizes that such patrols are helpful for maintaining order and discipline” within USFJ and “intends to continue to work closely with the U.S. side, while maintaining close communication with local communities,” according to a ministry news release Friday.
During the pause, USFJ conducted “additional standardized training … to reinforce the limited scope of U.S. Forces law enforcement authority outside U.S. Forces Japan facilities and areas permitted by the SOFA,” according to the statement.
El’s detention is still under investigation, Severns said Dec. 12.
Severns did not respond to email and phone inquiries Saturday from Stars and Stripes.
U.S. military police began joint patrols with Okinawa Prefectural Police in April in Okinawa city to enforce an order prohibiting service members from drinking alcohol off base between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. The order stemmed in part from a rash of sexual assault allegations that arose in December 2023 and have so far yielded two convictions.
The U.S. military began its own patrols in September in Okinawa city and in November in Chatan town and Naha city, Okinawa’s capital.
AloJapan.com