Amid a wave of deadly terrorism, the Israeli police foiled a plot to assassinate National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir who has garnered criticism for taking a hard line against Palestinian terrorism.
Hebrew-language Channel 13 reported on Tuesday evening that the Central Unit of the Jerusalem District Police and the Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security agency, arrested a Palestinian on suspicion that he was planning to assassinate Ben Gvir who is the leader of the far-right party Otzma Yehudit.
The arrest was accomplished several weeks ago but the information was only permitted for publication last night.
The report stated that the suspect, a resident of Jerusalem, met with terrorist elements in a neighboring country, who provided him with funds to assist in carrying out the murder. Some of the funds were also intended for the families of terrorists who had been arrested by Israel.
The suspect had gathered intelligence on the MK. The plot involved stealing a license plate from a police vehicle and using it to approach the minister’s convoy. The plan was intended to be carried out during the Muslim month of Ramadan when Ben Gvir intended to visit the Temple Mount.
A statement from Ben-Gvir’s office claimed that the suspect planned to carry out an additional murder of an Israeli in order to kidnap the body and use it to negotiate the release of Palestinian convicts incarcerated in Israeli jails.
“I am thankful for the security forces and the police officers that protect me and my life,” said Ben-Gvir. “I will not be scared off by attempts to harm me, and I will continue to work toward a strong right-wing security policy, defeat terrorism and return security and governance to the streets.”
The prosecutor’s office is expected to file an indictment against the suspect next week, charging him with contacting a foreign agent and terrorist activity.
Ben Gvir has taken a hard line against terrorism and is advocating for a bill that calls for the death penalty for terrorists. The bill, part of a coalition agreement reached with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, states that someone who kills an Israeli citizen “out of racism or hostility to their group… and aiming to harm the State of Israel and the renewal of the Jewish people in their land, shall be sentenced to death, and this penalty only.”
The bill was approved by the Ministerial Committee on Legislation on Sunday. Intended to act as a deterrent to terrorism, it comes in a week in which three Israelis were murdered by Palestinian terrorists.
Germany’s foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, made a statement this week criticizing the bill.
“We are firmly opposed to the death penalty, and we are raising this issue all over the world,” she said at a press conference on Tuesday. “That has always been an impressive argument for those of us who have defended Israel on the international stage against unfair criticism. I am convinced that it would be a big mistake to break with this history.”
Capital punishment was abolished in Germany for all crimes and is now explicitly prohibited by the constitution.
