Itamar Ben Gvir and Why the World Can No Longer Ignore Israel's Far Right

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir posted a video online this week showing bound humanitarian activists kneeling on the deck of a military vessel, with Israeli flags and the national anthem playing. One activist shouting 'Free Palestine' had her head pushed down, while Ben-Gvir added a mocking caption welcoming them to Israel. The footage, shared by Ben-Gvir’s official account, shocked observers abroad, though his provocative behavior aligns with his long history of ultranationalism and hostility toward Palestinians. Ben-Gvir’s political career traces back to the 1990s, when he appeared on television holding an ornament from then-Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin’s car, days before Rabin’s assassination by a Jewish extremist. He openly displayed a portrait of Baruch Goldstein, who massacred 29 Palestinian worshippers in 1994, and was a member of the Kach movement—a group designated as terrorist by Israel and the U.S. for its violent anti-Arab ideology. Though he later claimed to distance himself from Kach, his rhetoric and alliances reflected the same extremist views. In 2007, an Israeli court convicted Ben-Gvir of inciting racism and supporting terrorism, with dozens of additional indictments and investigations tied to extremist activity. The Israeli military exempted him from mandatory service due to his perceived radicalism, and the Israel Bar Association initially resisted his admission as a lawyer because of his criminal record. He later built a legal career defending Jewish extremists and settlers accused of violence against Palestinians, including those involved in the 2015 Duma arson attack, which killed an 18-month-old child and his parents. Despite his controversial past, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu deliberately included Ben-Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit party in his coalition government to secure parliamentary support. The move has drawn criticism from human rights advocates, who argue that Ben-Gvir’s presence normalizes extremism in Israeli politics. While global outrage over Gaza has intensified scrutiny of Ben-Gvir, his influence within the government remains unchallenged, raising concerns about the future of Israeli democracy and its treatment of Palestinians.