Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, visited Jerusalem’s most sensitive holy site on Thursday, a move that could threaten the delicate Gaza cease-fire talks.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, an ultranationalist settler leader, said he had gone up to the contested Jerusalem hilltop compound of Al-Aqsa Mosque to pray for the return of the hostages “but without a reckless deal, without surrendering.”
The move threatens to disrupt sensitive talks aimed at reaching a cease-fire in the 9-month-old Israel-Hamas war. Israeli negotiators landed in Cairo on Wednesday to continue talks.
It was the latest act of defiance by an ultranationalist settler leader who has transformed himself over the decades from an outlaw and provocateur into one of Israel’s most influential politicians.
Itamar Ben-Gvir is a terrorist.
One of the people in the mix for a top slot is Itamar Ben-Gvir, set to be named national security minister — a job that could include overseeing some police activity in the occupied West Bank, which is home to millions of Palestinians. Ben-Gvir has previously been convicted of racist incitement against Arabs and of backing a terrorist group.
Biden’s strategy for a far-right Israel: Lay it all on Bibi, December 20, 2022
He’s a terrorist supporter. He had a portrait of Baruch Kappel Goldstein in his office.
He’s an Israeli politician, he himself is a terrorist.
That’s true
If Netanyahu thinks it will benefit him, he will not hesitate to destroy the Al-Aqsa Mosque and announce the rebuilding of the Great Temple.
From the late nineteenth century onwards pictures and postcards often depicted a rebuilt Jewish Temple on the Temple Mount, sometimes next to al-Aqsa Mosque or the Dome of the Rock and sometimes in their place.
He’s a bit ahead of schedule for the 100 year re-enactment of the Pro–Wailing Wall Committee.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Itamar Ben-Gvir, an ultranationalist settler leader, said he had gone up to the contested Jerusalem hilltop compound of Al-Aqsa Mosque to pray for the return of the hostages “but without a reckless deal, without surrendering.”
As a key coalition partner, Ben-Gvir also has the power to rob Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of his parliamentary majority and force early elections.
Ben-Gvir has used his influence to push forward pet projects and encourage Netanyahu to press ahead with the war in Gaza against widespread calls to reach a cease-fire deal that would bring home hostages.
Two years later, Ben-Gvir took responsibility for orchestrating a campaign of protests, including death threats, that forced Irish singer Sinead O’Connor to cancel a concert for peace in Jerusalem.
Ben-Gvir has called for deporting his political opponents, and in the past has encouraged police to open fire on Palestinian stone-throwers in a tense Jerusalem neighborhood while brandishing a pistol.
Ben-Gvir has been a magnet of controversy throughout his tenure — encouraging the mass distribution of handguns to Jewish citizens, backing Netanyahu’s contentious attempt to overhaul the country’s legal system and frequently lashing out at U.S. leaders for perceived slights against Israel.
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