What to make of Israel’s new national guard
The force will be a publicly funded militia led by an ultra-nationalist
ON APRIL 2ND, at the behest of Binyamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, Israel’s cabinet approved the creation of a national guard under the control of the national-security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir. Mr Ben-Gvir, the leader of Jewish Power, a far-right party that forms part of Mr Netanyahu’s coalition government, is a stridently anti-Arab politician. He has been convicted by a court of inciting racial hatred and supporting Jewish terrorist organisations. Many Israeli observers fear that the national guard will act as his own publicly funded militia. Placing operational decisions in the hands of a politician would be a departure from legal norms. Why has the national guard been approved, and what powers will it have?
From the April 8th 2023 edition
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