Yesh Atid MK and former deputy internal security minister and senior police official Yoav Segalovitz demanded in a letter to Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana on Monday that the Knesset plenum hold an urgent debate over revelations in an investigative television program on Sunday night that National Security Minister MK Itamar Ben-Gvir repeatedly intervened in police operational work, which he is not allowed to do according to the law.
The television program was the first episode of two on Channel 13’s HaMakor, hosted by journalist Raviv Drucker. The second episode aired on Monday night after press time.
The investigation was based on a broad leak of texts and voice messages on a WhatsApp group, including Ben-Gvir’s inner circle.
The leaks show, among other things, that Ben-Gvir encouraged the illegal use of stun grenades against protesters against the government’s judicial reforms in March 2023 and that his decision to remove then-Tel Aviv district police chief Ami Eshed from his position was directly related to what he believed was Eshed’s soft handling of the protests.
Whatsapp leak
They also show that Ben-Gvir considered spending a holiday in the Old City during Ramadan, despite security concerns, in order to provoke Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the latter’s decision to shut the Temple Mount to Jewish visitors.
And that contrary to his denials, Ben-Gvir received constant counseling from the far-right extremist Bentzi Gopstein on matters relating to his ministry.
Ben-Gvir is prohibited by law from involving himself with operational aspects of police work, as the police must remain independent of political pressure.
The WhatsApp messages, which could not be independently verified, seemed to show that the national security minister repeatedly violated the law.
Ben-Gvir is currently facing a petition in the High Court of Justice to force Netanyahu to fire him over the “extreme unreasonableness” of his appointment.
The Attorney-General’s Office is expected to issue its legal opinion this week.