A Knesset committee session on a controversial bill that proposes deporting relatives of terrorists erupted into a heated altercation, involving shouting and personal insults. The session escalated after MK Ofer Cassif opposed the bill, leading to a tense exchange with National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who labeled Cassif a “terrorist.”
Archiv: Itamar Ben-Gvir (the real Pharao / acting ruler of Israel / third Netanyahu term)
Following Stormy Debate, Knesset Advances Bill to Expel Family Members of ‘Terrorists’
The bill would give authority to the interior minister, after holding an arraignment, to expel the family member “to the territory of the Gaza Strip, or a different expulsion destination, depending on the circumstances.” The expulsion would apply for seven to 15 years for an Israeli citizen and 10 to 20 years for a noncitizen. According to the bill, the Israel Police has “all of the authorities given to it by law, including the authority to enter any place, remove from it any person, and use reasonable force to do so.”
The debate before the vote was heated, as far-right MKs who supported the bill accused MK Ofer Cassif (Hadash), who opposed the bill, of being a “terrorism supporter.” At one point, Knesset ushers had to physically stand between Cassif and MK Almog Cohen (Otzma Yehudit) who brutally attacked the Communist lawmaker.
As Cassif entered the hearing, a woman told the Cassif that he should be “ashamed of his position,” and far-right lawmakers began shouting at Cassif, with National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir calling him a “terrorist.” As Cassif addressed the committee, which he called a “gathering of fascists,” lawmakers screamed at him to leave and called on chairman Ofir Katz (Likud) to have him removed from the room. “Lucky you didn’t bring your pager,” one MK quipped, referring to the mass attack attributed to Israel that saw thousands of Hezbollah pagers explode on the men carrying them.”
What leaked US assessment of Israeli plans to strike Iran shows
The documents also report no sign of any preparations by Israel to activate its nuclear deterrent. (…)
The US has made no secret of its opposition to the targeting of either Iran’s nuclear research facilities or its oil installations.
Israel deports two German citizens: Ben Gvir
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said that two „terrorist-supporting anarchists with German citizenship“ who allegedly entered an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank and „disturbed and clashed with soldiers“ have been deported.
“A special team that I established in the Israel police as soon as the war broke out acted with determination and speed to arrest and deport them,” the far-right minister wrote in a post on X.
“That’s the only way it works.”
Iran Braces for Israeli Attack That Could Change the Middle East Forever
(October 3, 2024)
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran‘s longtime supreme leader, has for decades officially banned the production of nuclear weapons. But Israel, which possesses its own semisecret nuclear arsenal, has long accused the country of also clandestinely pursuing weapons of mass destruction.
Trump says Israel should ‚hit Iran‘s nuclear facilities first‘ days after Biden urges restraint
„Isn‘t that what you‘re supposed to hit? I mean, it‘s the biggest risk we have, nuclear weapons,“ he said.
„When they asked him that question, the answer should have been, hit the nuclear first, and worry about the rest later,“ Trump added.
Israel has given no assurances it won’t target Iran’s nuclear facilities, top State Department official tells CNN
The official added that it is “really hard to tell” if Israel will use the anniversary of Hamas’ October 7 attacks to retaliate.
“We hope and expect to see some wisdom as well as strength, but as you guys know, no guarantees,” the official said when asked by CNN if Israel has assured the US that Iran’s nuclear sites are off the table.
Hezbollah leader agreed to temporary ceasefire days before assassination, says Lebanese foreign minister
Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had agreed to a 21-day ceasefire just days before he was assassinated by Israel.
The temporary ceasefire was called for by US President Joe Biden, his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron and other allies during last week’s UN General Assembly.
Lebanese FM Claims Israel Killed Nasrallah Shortly After He Agreed to Ceasefire
Christiane Amanpour: “Are you saying Hassan Nasrallah had agreed to a ceasefire just moments before he was assassinated?”
Abdallah Bou Habib: “He agreed. He agreed, yes, yes. We agreed completely. Lebanon agreed to a ceasefire, but consulting with the Hezbollah. The speaker, Mr. Berri, consulted with Hezbollah. And we informed the Americans and the French that that’s what happened.”
Christiane Amanpour: “So” —
Abdallah Bou Habib: “And they told us that Mr. Netanyahu also agreed on the statement that was issued by both presidents.”
Ben Gvir threatens to quit Israeli government if ceasefire agreed in Lebanon
„If a temporary ceasefire is signed, Jewish Power will not be committed to the coalition,“ Ben-Gvir said, referring to his far-right party.
„If the temporary ceasefire becomes permanent, we will resign from the government.“
Protesters scuffle with police, try to break through a barricade. They’re chanting “shame,” “Ben Gvir is a terrorist” and “where were you at Sde Teiman,” the infamous prison where Palestinian prisoners were abused, at the cops
Israel’s former spy chief slams Netanyahu over Philadelphi Corridor
Argaman, who headed the Shin Bet between 2016 and 2021, said the majority of weapons entered Gaza through the Rafah border crossing.
“When Netanyahu speaks of remaining on the Philadelphi Corridor, he knows very well that no smuggling takes place over the Philadelphi Corridor. So we are now relegated to living with this imaginary figment,” he said.
Netanyahu says security in Gaza is critical to stop Hamas smuggling hostages into Iran: ‚lost forever‘
According to Netanyahu, the best way to prevent these Hamas hostage smuggling efforts is through maintaining the contested Philadelphi Route – a security corridor that runs between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.
Netanyahu is unequivocal about ceasefire and hostage agreement with Hamas: ‘There’s not a deal in the making’
(September 5, 2024)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday was as clear as he has ever been that he does not believe a ceasefire and hostage deal is likely in Gaza in a sharp rebuke to the Biden administration’s insistence it’s close at hand.
“There’s not a deal in the making,” Netanyahu told Fox News. “Unfortunately, it’s not close.”
Netanyahu derailed a potential Gaza hostage deal in July, Israeli newspaper reports
)September 4, 2024)
The report lends credence to charges often leveled at the prime minister – most notably by hostage families – of purposefully prolonging the war and torpedoing deals for his political benefit. Far-right members of Netanyahu’s coalition have pledged to bring down the government should he end the war.
Several news outlets, including CNN, have reported on the late July demands made by Netanyahu, but this is the first time the Israeli document has been obtained in full.
Israeli police foil film screening of Mohammed Bakri’s Janin Jenin by issuing temporary order to close Communist Party headquarters in Haifa
(August 27, 2024)
Monday night, the Maki Haifa Branch was shut down by the police for an event that included a screening of Mohammed Bakri’s new film. Bakri’s earlier film, Jenin, Jenin, was banned by an Israeli Court in 2021. Adalah demands immediate intervention by the Attorney General to ensure police will not obstruct the next screening. This action is part of broader Israeli police policies designed to suppress dissent against Israel’s brutal assault on Gaza.
Fascism in practice
(4 days ago )
The Israeli police decides to close down the headquarters of the Communist Party in Haifa
Israel and Ben Gvir’s Police have just decided to shut the headquarters of the Communist Party in Haifa for ten hours starting at 19:00 this evening.
Police Violence as Thousands in Tel Aviv Demand End of War and Deal with Hamas
Thousands protested in Tel Aviv on Monday night, April 29, in a rally that later descended into clashes with police forces, arrests, and police violence toward protesters and relatives of hostages. The rally reached the King George Street near of the ruling Likud party’s headquarters, where police used a water cannon and mounted cops to disperse the protest.
Cops shoved Ilana Gritzewsky, Matan Zangauker’s partner who was kidnapped on October 7 and released in the November deal. Early protesters blocked the army headquarters entrance at Begin Street and Einav Zangauker, mother of hostage Matan, addressed Netanyahu, saying he had to choose between bringing the hostages home and keeping intact his government over the objections of racist ministers Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, who vehemently oppose a hostage deal that would require a ceasefire. Einav Zangauker told Ynet that cops had pushed her to the ground at the Likud headquarters and that the police used excessive force and sent in disproportionate forces to disperse the crowd, in what she called “stepped-up violence.”
Urgent: Israeli Occupation vehicles are besieging both Al-Amal Hospital and Al-Naser Hospital amidst very intense shelling and heavy gunfire. Occupation vehicles are currently surrounding Al-Amal Hospital and conducting extensive excavation work around the hospital. All of our teams are in extreme danger at the moment and are completely immobilized. Additionally, they are unable to bury the body of our colleague Amir Abu Aisha within the hospital’s backyard.
Israeli forces demand Palestinians leave Khan Younis hospital ‘naked’ says medical charity
The charity said that Israeli forces had made these demands on Saturday via a drone speaker as it launched smoke bombs to encourage staff to leave the facility.
It added that one of the injured Palestinians left in al-Amal hospital was also shot dead by Israeli forces.
Palestinians describe bodies and ambulances crushed in Israel’s ongoing raid around Gaza hospital
Israeli jets on Sunday launched several strikes near the Shifa Hospital, which largely stopped functioning following the November raid. After claiming that Hamas maintained an elaborate command center there, Israeli forces months ago exposed a single tunnel leading to a few underground rooms.
Hardly any aid has been delivered in recent weeks to northern Gaza and Gaza City, where Shifa is located.
Israel will no longer approve Unrwa food convoys to northern Gaza, says agency‘s chief
In a post on social media platform X, Philippe Lazzarini said Israeli authorities informed the UN of the decision, which he called „outrageous“.
„As of today, Unrwa, the main lifeline for Palestine Refugees, is denied from providing lifesaving assistance to northern Gaza,“ Lazzarini said.
Ben Gvir says Israeli troops ‚acted excellently‘, calls for halt in aid to Gaza
After the Palestinian health ministry reported that Israeli troops killed more than 100 people waiting for food aid in northern Gaza on Thursday, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said Israeli forces „acted excellently against a Gazan mob that tried to harm them“.
He further called on Israel to stop transferring aid to Gaza.
Racist Ben Gvir Warns Hadash Leader ‘Next in Line’ to Be Expelled from Knesset
Racist National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir appears to threaten Hadash MK Ayman Odeh with impeachment, tweeting out a picture of him with the message “next in line.” The photo shared by Ben Gvir shows Odeh holding the arm of Khalida Jarrar, a legislator and senior figure in the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, as she flashes a victory sign following her release from prison in September 2021. On last December 27, Jarrar was arrested again by occupation forces.
The far-right leader’s message comes hours after members of the Knesset House Committee overwhelmingly supported a motion to expel Hadash-Ta’al party lawmaker Ofer Cassif, voting 14-2 to advance his impeachment to the Knesset plenum following two days of contentious debate. During Tuesday’s debate on Cassif’s impeachment, Hadash-Ta’al MK Ahmad Tibi warned the Communist lawmaker’s ouster would “set a precedent” allowing for the impeachment of “all the Arab MKs in the Knesset.” “This is a black day for the Knesset,” Tibi declares following the vote.
Cabinet members call to resettle Gaza, encourage Gazans to leave, at jubilant conference
(29.01.2024)
Speaking amid a carnival-like atmosphere at the Jerusalem International Convention Center, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, the leader of the ultranationalist Religious Zionism party, extolled the virtues of creating new settlements, declaring: “God willing, we will settle and we will be victorious.”
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, leader of the extreme-right Otzma Yehudit party, told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was not present, and the audience that it was “time to return home to Gush Katif” — the name of the Israeli settlement bloc in Gaza that was evacuated in the 2005 Disengagement.
Ben Gvir slams ICJ as antisemitic, says Israel should ignore ruling on provisional measures
(26.01.2024)
“The decision of the antisemitic court in The Hague proves what was already known: This court does not seek justice, but rather the persecution of Jewish people. They were silent during the Holocaust and today they continue the hypocrisy and take it another step further,” he says.
The ICJ in its current iteration was founded in 1945.
Israeli national security minister reacts to ICJ ruling, calling it ‚Hague Shmague‘
Last night‘s events in Tel Aviv paint a disturbing picture: the Tel Aviv police are becoming highly influenced by Ben Gvir‘s sentiments regarding protestors. From the accounts of demonstrators, including videos and testimonies, it is evident that severe violence, dismantling of signs, political persecution, and incitement against protesters are becoming disturbingly routine.
We urge the Attorney General not to remain silent when the police transform into a political tool, targeting those who dissent from the government‘s stance.
Particularly in times of war, it is crucial to safeguard freedom of expression and the right to protest.
Combative security cabinet meeting on post-war Gaza uncovers coalition‘s crisis
Israel‘s War Cabinet gathered overnight on Friday to discuss the future of the Gaza Strip after the nation‘s war against Hamas ends. The meeting was reportedly cut off after lawmakers clashed with the defense establishment over the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) investigation of the mistakes leading to the October 7 tragedy that had previously been promised to start after the Israel-Hamas war.
Miri Regev, Minister of Transport and Road Safety, pointed out that the decision over the probe had been made without lawmakers‘ knowledge and argued that the army should be fully focused on the combat in the moment.
Biden under pressure to act amid new fears of ‘ethnic cleansing’ in Gaza
“The United States remains firmly opposed to any forced or enduring displacement of Palestinians from Gaza,” a State Department spokesperson told Al Jazeera in an email on Monday evening, without commenting specifically on the Israeli ministers’ most recent remarks.
Ben Gvir says he will leave the coalition if military offensive doesn’t ‘continue at full strength’
Gvir criticised the government‘s handling of the war and added that Hamas remains undeterred after 73 days of war.
“You don’t make pauses and don’t allow our enemies to set shocking conditions for the release of the hostages,” he said.
Police’s Silencing of Hadash Is an Alarming Phase in the Erosion of Democracy, “Haaretz”
“Police’s silencing of Arab-Jewish Hadash front is an alarming phase in the erosion of Israeli democracy,” according today’s (Dec. 10) Haaretz editorial. “The attempt by the Israel Police to prevent a conference by the left-wing Arab and Jewish Hadash front scheduled for next Saturday in Shfaram shows that under the cover of the war, the ‘temporary’ violation of basic rights threatens to become permanent. Israeli Police are trying to prevent a Hadash national convention scheduled for Saturday, December 16, claiming that it would feature ‘inciting speeches that would endanger the public’s well-being.‘”
Police Tries to Prevent Hadash National Convention
(08.12.2023)
According Hadash and CPI, “utterly reject the fascist intimidation acts by the Israeli establishment. We insist on raising our voice against the war and against fascism – courageously and responsibly. We will carry out the congress on the scheduled date. A decision about the location will be reached later. We call on all our activists to take part in our struggle against this persecution of our party and front for its political role.”
“We call on all our cadres, all the Jewish and Arab progressive forces, and the international anti-fascist forces to protest this McCarthyistic persecution, targeting all voices that stand out against this criminal war and against the deterioration of Israel into fascism. This process began before the war, but the government saw its eruption as an occasion to accelerate the attacks on the already diminished democratic space.”
Ben Gvir at Jerusalem attack scene: We must only speak to Hamas through military actions
“This type of incident proves again how much we can’t show weakness, how much we have to speak to Hamas only through intentions, only through the war,” he says, appearing to criticize the government’s ceasefire negotiations with the terror group.
As Israel awaits 6th set of hostages, Netanyahu vows war will resume after truce
(Today, 4:47 pm)
“In recent days I’ve heard a question: Will Israel return to fighting after this stage of returning our hostages is over? My response is an unequivocal yes,” the premier says. “There is no way we won’t return to fighting until the end.”
Some in Netanyahu’s Government Pressure Him to Reject Longer Cease-Fire
(Nov. 29, 2023, 9:34 a.m. ET)
“Stopping the war = breaking apart the government,” said Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s far-right national security minister, who threatened to leave the governing coalition.
Ben-Gvir’s Police are Arresting Innocent Arabs, Adalah
(26.11.2023)
In the majority of the cases, the indictments included accusations of supporting or identifying with a terrorist organization, according to section 24a of the Law of the Fight Against Terror and accusations of incitement to terrorism according to section 24b of the same law.
According Adalah, Israeli authorities have accused dozens of individuals of “supporting terrorist organizations” or engaging in “incitement to terrorism” for planning protests and expressing their opinions on social media platforms. The posts, interactions, and other means of expression largely fall within the rights protected by freedom of expression. The speech includes opposition to the targeting of civilians in Gaza, expressions of sympathy for the Palestinian people in Gaza, opposition to collective punishment and war crimes, and the dissemination of news about Gaza.
Ben Gvir threatens to tear down government if war not resumed
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir threatens to break apart the government if Israel does not restart its war with Hamas, currently on a negotiated pause.
“Stopping the war = breaking apart the government,” he threatens in a statement.