Israel approves Ben-“national Gvir’s guard,” but limits its authority
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Sulaiman
- . April 3, 2023
- . Update: April 4, 2023 1:32 am
Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right security head, requested a national guard on Sunday to focus on Arab disturbances, but Israel approved it without giving him direct leadership because of concerns from political opponents that the unit may turn into a sectarian “militia.”
Following pro-Palestinian demonstrations in mixed Jewish-Arab neighborhoods during the Gaza War in May 2021, the previous administration started establishing an extra police unit to combat internal unrest. Before the new force was fully formed, that government was toppled.
The turmoil of 2021 contributed to Ben-rise Gvir’s in politics. He is a hard-line Jewish settler in the occupied West Bank with prior convictions for supporting terrorism and inciting hatred of Arabs, who make up 21% of Israel’s population.
After renouncing some of his opinions, he joined Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition with an increased law-and-order portfolio, promising to incorporate a strengthened national guard for deployment primarily in Arab areas that had seen violence and unrest.
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It will only address this, she said. The cops are not the only ones that deal with this. He said on Army Radio, “It’s busy with a thousand and one things.
The project gained momentum last week when Netanyahu decided to submit Ben-national Gvir’s guard for cabinet approval after the security minister supported his decision to postpone a proposal for a judicial change that had sparked widespread demonstrations.
Yet, after voting in favor on Sunday, the cabinet stated in a statement that it was still unclear to whom the national guard would report. It established a multi-agency panel to make recommendations in 90 days on these and other matters.
That seemed to be in response to the attorney general’s complaint that the cabinet decision was made without first defining the national guard’s guidelines.
According to the Ynet news site, Inspector-General Yaacov Shabtai, the head of Israel’s police force, has expressed concerns that the national guard “may be very costly and even impair the security of the population” if it is not under his own force’s control.
Regarding Ben-volubility Gvir’s on social media, opposition leader Yair Lapid derided the planned national guard last week, calling it “a private militia for a dangerous Tik-Tok clown.”
“Why does the State of Israel need another national guard when it already has an army, police, military intelligence, Shin Bet, Mossad, National Security Council, Prisons Service, riot police, and a SWAT team?” Arab lawmaker Ayman Odeh tweeted.
Ben-Gvir claimed that he wanted control over the national guard because, in his opinion, police chiefs had neglected it. Nonetheless, he admitted to Army Radio that he would be open to the idea of retaining their authority “if they’re sincere and really want it.”
According to him, it would take months for the national guard to get up and running. The initial intake will be 1,850 people, who may include volunteers from the Arab and Jewish communities as well as seconded or reservist police officers.
