Draft:Itamar Ben-Gvir

Itamar Ben-Gvir
Itamar Ben-Gvir
Name	Itamar Ben-Gvir
Other Names	Template:Horizontal list
Personal Details
Birth Place	Israel
Religion	Jewish
	v; t; e;

Itamar Ben-Gvir was born in occupied Jerusalem. He is an Israeli far-right politician (in his lexicon, there is no place for Palestine, and he has gained all his popularity among extremist Jewish circles based on hatred toward Arabs). He has served as the Minister of National Security of the Israel since December 29, 2022. He was first elected as a member of the Knesset in 2021. Prior to that, he worked as a media advisor. Throughout his political career, fifty indictments have been filed against him. Some of the charges and indictments include: incitement to racism, property damage, and support for a terrorist organization (the illegal Kach movement led by Meir Kahane, which he joined at the age of 16).

Overview

Ben-Gvir is an Oriental Zionist born in 1976 in the city of Jerusalem. His father was an Iraqi Jew who worked in a company and was also a writer. His mother was from Iraqi Kurdistan and was of Iraqi Kurdish origin. His grandfather belonged to a Jewish lineage that had lived for centuries in Iraq. He was part of the youth branch of "Etzel," the military wing of the right-wing Zionist movement. At the age of 14, he was detained by British forces in the area. Ben-Gvir is married and lives with his wife and five children in the Hebron ghetto.

After completing high school, Ben-Gvir enrolled in a Jewish religious school and later joined the occupying army. However, after two years, he was exempted from mandatory service due to his far-right views. In a statement to an Israeli newspaper, Ben-Gvir expressed dissatisfaction with this decision, saying: "The army of the Israel has lost me."

In 2008, Ben-Gvir studied law at the Ono Academic College. Upon completing his studies, the Israel Bar Association barred him from taking the bar examination due to his criminal record. Ben-Gvir claimed that this decision was politically motivated. Following a series of protests, the decision was revoked, allowing him to take the exam. He passed both the written and oral examinations and obtained his license to practice law.

Extremist Ideologies

Ben-Gvir derived his extremist ideologies from the school of Rabbi Meir Kahane, founder of the "Kach" movement, which he represented in the Knesset of the Israel in 1984 before his movement was classified as "terrorist and fascist." Known as "Kahanism" (Arabophobia), its approach combined exaggerated nationalism, political religiosity, and violent actions. According to Kahanism, Ben-Gvir believes that Arabs in Palestine are enemies who must be eliminated through violence, coexistence with them is unacceptable, and all Jews worldwide must immigrate to Palestine.

He displayed a portrait of Baruch Goldstein, the perpetrator of the Ibrahimi Mosque massacre—which resulted in the deaths of 29 worshippers on February 25, 1994—on the wall of his home, describing him as a "hero." As a result of this massacre, Israel banned the Kach movement, labeling it a terrorist organization.

Political Activities

Ben-Gvir's political activities began in 1995 when he was 19 years old, following the signing of the "Oslo Accords" between Israeli and Palestinian parties in September 1993. Referring to the Cadillac car of Yitzhak Rabin, the then Prime Minister of the Israel, he stated: "If we could reach Yitzhak Rabin's car, we will also reach him." However, just a few weeks after this incident, Rabin was assassinated and shot dead on November 4, 1995. Subsequently, Ben-Gvir launched and led a campaign demanding the release of Rabin's assassin.

Ben-Gvir joined the Kach movement in 1972, a movement founded under the leadership of the extremist Rabbi Meir Kahane. Kahane based his policies on the demand to eliminate Arabs in the land of the Israel, particularly in Palestine, whether through persuasion or force if they refused. Kahane opposed democracy, considering it suitable only for those who had not received the Torah, which contains divine texts regarding the political sovereignty of Jews.

The racism and extremism of the movement were even unacceptable within the Likud party, as party representatives would leave the Knesset during Kahane's speeches. Kahane was elected as a representative in 1984 but was assassinated in New York City in 1990 by Sayyid Nasir Masri. The Kach movement was classified as a terrorist organization in Israel and the USA and was banned due to its extreme nationalism, political religiosity, and use of violent methods.

Following the ban on the Kach movement, Ben-Gvir continued his extremist and racist activities against Palestinians, engaging in violent actions and incitement against them. He has been charged eight times, including accusations of inciting racial hatred and supporting terrorist organizations.

Political Career

Ben-Gvir led the "Otzma Yehudit" party, founded in 2012 by followers of Kahane. The party failed to enter the Knesset in the 2013 and 2015 elections, both independently and through alliances with other parties.
Prior to the 2019 elections, the party joined the Jewish Home alliance, which included far-right parties. The alliance secured five seats, while "Otzma Yehudit" ranked seventh among the coalition parties in terms of votes.
In the second 2019 election, the party ran independently, garnering 1.88% of the vote, but failed to cross the 3.25% threshold required for Knesset entry.
In the 24th Knesset elections, Ben-Gvir led "Otzma Yehudit" and received support from former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Upon securing a Knesset seat in March 2021, he declared, referring broadly to Palestinians, that "Israel's enemies" must be removed from their land.
In December 2022, he was appointed minister by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, joining the security cabinet and assuming responsibility for local police and the Israel Border Police.
Following his victory, the Hebrew newspaper Haaretz described Ben-Gvir and his party's success in the 2022 Knesset elections as "a dark day in Israel's history."
Ben-Gvir is distinguished by his racist and hostile positions toward Arabs, as he promotes the idea of forcibly removing Arabs from Palestine and opposes coexistence with them. Ben-Gvir believes that Jews worldwide should immigrate to Palestine.
Ben-Gvir demonstrated anti-Arab sentiments from childhood, beginning participation in right-wing demonstrations at age fourteen within the extremist party "Moledet," led by General Rehavam Ze'evi, its founder. Ze'evi was assassinated in 2001 by youths from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
Ben-Gvir is known for displaying a portrait of the Jewish perpetrator of the Cave of the Patriarchs massacre, which killed 29 worshippers, Baruch Goldstein, on the wall of his home in the "Kiryat Arba" settlement built in the Hebron area, describing him as a "hero."
Ben-Gvir considers preventing Jews from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque on Fridays and Islamic holidays as discrimination against them, promoting the notion that Jews in Al-Quds fear viewing the Western Wall in the Arab Old City.
In addition to his settlement activities, Ben-Gvir is distinguished by his attacks on Israeli Palestinian citizens. He views the primary future threat to Israel not as Iran or the occupied Palestinian territories, but as internal Palestinians, whom he labels a fifth column despite their status as Israeli citizens.
Ben-Gvir had previously called for the displacement of Palestinians from their land; after establishing a parliamentary office in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, he exacerbated tensions in East Jerusalem and repeatedly encouraged settlers to storm Al-Aqsa Mosque.

According to Armin Rosen, a journalist for the American Jewish magazine Tablet, who met with Ben-Gvir in August 2022, Ben-Gvir is a man suffering from a pathological hatred of Arabs.

Support for Extremists

Ben-Gvir studied law, graduating in 2008 from the Ono Academic College of Law. He subsequently served as a parliamentary assistant to Michael Ben-Ari, a member of the right-wing National Union party, and attempted to join the Israel Bar Association, but his application was rejected due to his criminal record and involvement in far-right demonstrations and activities.

In 2006, he defended two teenagers accused of participating in the arson attack in Duma, which killed a couple and their child. Interfaith marriage was also tried in this case, and in 2007 he was convicted of inciting racism for carrying a banner reading "Expel the Arab enemy." In response to the Bar Association's refusal to admit him, Ben-Gvir led protests against the decision until he was granted membership in 2012, passing the bar exam after several attempts.

Ben-Gvir continued representing what Israeli newspapers described as "rogue settlers," such as the "Hilltop Youth" involved in constructing illegal settlements, whom Ben-Gvir called "the salt of the earth," while most Israelis viewed them as perpetrators.

Ben-Gvir told an Israeli newspaper: "I do not do this for money. At best, it only covers my car's fuel costs. I do this because I believe these individuals need my help."

Entry into the Knesset

In the 19th Knesset elections, Michael Ben-Ari included his assistant Ben-Gvir and his friend Baruch Marzel on the party list he formed in January 2013, but failed to secure enough votes to win a seat in the Knesset.
In the 21st Knesset elections, Ben-Gvir headed the "Otzma Yehudit" list, which received approximately 83,000 votes but did not cross the electoral threshold.
Prior to the 23rd Knesset elections, Naftali Bennett, leader of the New Right party, refused to include Ben-Gvir on his Religious Zionism alliance list.
In the 24th Knesset elections, Ben-Gvir led the "Otzma Yehudit" party and received support from former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Immediately following his election as a Knesset member in March 2021, he stated that "enemies of the Zionist regime must be removed from this country. Our land," referring generally to Palestinians.
During the 25th session in October 2022, Ben-Gvir nominated himself for an unspecified ministerial position, but his ally Bezalel Smotrich stated that he "sought a portfolio for defense or internal security," and Ben-Gvir received support from Netanyahu.
In December 2022, Netanyahu appointed him as Minister of National Security. In Netanyahu's security cabinet, he assumed responsibility for the local police and the Israeli military border police.

The Hebrew newspaper Haaretz described his and his party's victory in the 2022 Knesset elections as "a black day in the history of Israel."

References