Ben Gvir Acknowledges Halting Pursuit of Settler Terrorism: "I Ended That"

SadaNews - Last night, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir admitted that he has changed the police's approach in the occupied West Bank towards settlers involved in terrorist attacks and criminal acts since he took office, according to a report by Haaretz on Wednesday evening.

He noted that he has put an end to the pursuit of "hilltop youth." Speaking at a conference for the "Otzma Yehudit" party, he said: "Before I came, the police were chasing hilltop youth, running after 14-year-olds and bothering them. That is over. That does not exist during my term. I am proud that I changed that."

Ben Gvir's comments came in response to a question from an opponent present in the hall, who asked him: "How can no one be arrested when Jews carry out a massacre against Arabs in the West Bank?" He initially responded by saying: "I am glad that some from the left also came here," to applause from the audience.

He added: "They are not second-class citizens," referring to the settlers. He continued: "I want to tell you something else; today the police in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), and I am proud of them, focus on stone-throwing and Molotov cocktails. That is what they should do."

During the same conference, MP Limor Son Har-Melech, from the "Otzma Yehudit" party, stated that the government is engaged in "global wars against law enforcement officials, and against senior levels in the military command, who do not distinguish between the enemy and the citizen, and are concerned about the rights of terrorists instead of the rights of citizens."

Last April, the government’s legal advisor, Gali Baharav-Miara, informed the Supreme Court that she had reached understandings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding Ben Gvir's appointment as Minister of National Security, provided that restrictions are placed on his powers.

The agreement stipulated that Ben Gvir "shall not issue instructions or intervene in any way in the police’s operational decisions, including indirect influence," as well as limiting his intervention in appointments, especially in middle ranks.

Ben Gvir's statements come at a time when an investigation is underway regarding the commander of the central unit of the occupation police in the West Bank, Avichai Ma'alam, who is suspected of willfully ignoring intelligence information regarding assaults carried out by settlers to gain Ben Gvir’s favor for a promotion.

Recorded conversations obtained by the police investigation unit revealed that Ma'alam refrained from making arrests despite the availability of evidence. Last Monday evening, correspondences were published showing that Ma'alam ignored warnings from his superiors and the Shin Bet during a mass attack on the village of Jit, west of Nablus, last August.

Previous leaks also indicated that he admitted to postponing arrests of settlers involved in setting fires in Palestinian villages, including destruction of property and threatening the lives of Palestinians after storming their villages, claiming he did not want to "bother" Ben Gvir, who was preoccupied at the time with preparations for his daughter's celebration.