Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised to advance National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s death penalty bill three years ago, the minister claimed in a Maariv interview published Friday.
“This isn’t something I came up with yesterday or the day before. In the coalition agreements with Likud, I signed with the justice minister and with the prime minister on this three years ago, and Netanyahu promised me a death penalty law for terrorists,” he said.
Ben-Gvir claimed the bill must be mandatory to be effective, arguing that leaving discretion to prosecutors or courts would ensure it is never applied.
“Everyone has their law of faith. For the haredim it’s the draft law; for me, it’s the death penalty for terrorists. We need to give this law a chance,” he insisted.
According to Ben-Gvir, there is currently a death penalty law in the military court, but it has never been enacted because the military advocate-general never requested it.
“It will be the same here if it’s a matter of discretion. The adviser will never ask, and the court will never ask. That’s why I want to strip discretion from the attorney-general and from the court, and ensure that if a person is convicted, of course, after a trial, evidence, proof of murder on a nationalist background, he must be executed. Period.”
“This is a deterrent law,” he continued, “Like the other changes I made in the prison system. At the time, not everyone was with me - not even the prime minister. Today, there isn’t a single person who disagrees - including the Shin Bet, including all the ministers - that what we did in the prisons reduces terror attacks. It’s the biggest change ever made in the State of Israel, from end to end.”
A-G calls on Netanyahu to remove Ben-Gvir
Additionally, Ben-Gvir stated that Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara’s call to dismiss him was his “greatest award.”
“It shows I influenced, I led policy in the South, I changed the Prison Service,” he said.
Baharav-Miara argues that Ben-Gvir has eroded police independence, exceeded ministerial authority, and injected political considerations into law enforcement. Her position has led to an unusual request for the High Court of Justice to be asked on Thursday to compel the prime minister to explain why he has not dismissed the minister.
Netanyahu has already stated that Ben-Gvir will not be fired, calling the effort an improper expansion of judicial power into political decision-making.
Ben-Gvir, a key coalition partner who brings clear electoral strength yet polarizes the broader public, said the system is trying to oust him through legal means. He insisted that court-ordered removal would lack authority in the absence of an indictment or conviction, and noted Netanyahu’s stated refusal to dismiss him.
Death of haredi teen at draft law protest
Addressing the death of teenager Yosef Eisenthal at the haredi draft protest, Ben-Gvir said the tragedy reflected permissive protest rules. “If the attorney-general had not repeatedly undermined my policy, this event would not have happened,” he said, arguing that his directive bars road blockages in any protest. He accused Baharav-Miara of normalizing disruptions and creating unequal enforcement between different demonstrations.
“But what happened? An adviser came along and said: There is no protest without a disturbance of public order, and turned road blockages into something routine. Today, the police cannot tell haredim, ‘Don’t block roads,’ when they allow it on Kaplan,” Ben-Gvir said.
“Yesterday it was the Left, today it’s the haredim, and tomorrow it will be anyone else. And yes, I blame the adviser, plain and simple.”
Pressed on policing at the scene, Ben-Gvir said the incident would be examined, adding that the Israel Police have suspended and fired officers when necessary. He criticized the low rate of indictments against demonstrators who blocked roads, asserting that his policy against blockages would have prevented the incident.
Bedouin civilian killed by police in Tarabin
Discussing an incident involving a Bedouin civilian being killed by police fire during an operation in the Negev community of Tarabin, Ben-Gvir moved quickly to back the officer involved, drawing criticism from opponents who said he offered blanket support before a full inquiry.
After the Jerusalem protest, questions were directed at police over event management, the lack of barriers between demonstrators and traffic, and overall command responsibility.
Ben-Gvir defended his swift support for the officer in Tarabin, saying he received real-time updates from the police commissioner and has instituted a culture of backing police and prison guards.
“It is indeed a serious incident, and it will be examined. In this regard, the police have proven themselves - especially over the past year,” he said.
“When necessary, we fire officers, suspend officers; we don’t sweep things under the table or under the carpet. The police commissioner is very clear about this. There may have been a localized failure, and I have no intention of giving anyone a free pass.”
He tied increased recruitment to his approach, claiming thousands of officers joined in 2024 and 2025 because they knew they would be supported.
“Is this a reason to fire a minister?” he asked, criticizing Deputy A-G Gil Limon for allegedly seeking his removal over such support.
Responding to Arab lawmakers who called enforcement operations in the Negev “collective punishment,” Ben-Gvir likened checkpoints to routine security at malls and stadiums, saying they are intended to protect law-abiding residents. He said police have stepped up enforcement against illegal construction, claiming 5,000 illegal structures were demolished this year.
Ben-Gvir argued the High Court lacks authority to force his removal absent an indictment or conviction, citing Basic Law provisions and past rulings on ministerial eligibility.
“The attorney-general, together with her deputy Gil Limon, is behaving like a mafia. Two months ago she sent me a message: if you don’t appoint Rinat Saban, I’ll make sure you’re fired,” he said.
“She said it and is trying to carry it out. But I don’t cooperate with a mafia, I don’t surrender to a mafia, and I don’t count mafia threats."
He accused Baharav-Miara and her deputy of coercive tactics over appointments in the Israel Police, and dismissed claims that he altered the Temple Mount status quo without the prime minister’s consent. Even if policy disagreements existed, he said, they are not grounds for dismissal.
“By the way, one of the claims is that I changed policy on the Temple Mount and allowed Jews to pray, without the prime minister’s consent. First of all, the prime minister destroyed that entire argument when he said he doesn’t think there is a violation of the status quo on the Temple Mount, and that all the changes Ben-Gvir is making there are with his knowledge. But let’s say I really had acted in disagreement with the prime minister - does that justify firing a minister?” he challenged.
He reiterated support for advancing judicial reform and for removing the attorney-general, saying there is growing agreement within the government.
Possibility of early elections
Ben-Gvir said he does not expect early elections, but is not concerned if they are held sooner, claiming growing public support. He backed an unconditional presidential pardon for Netanyahu and criticized the burden of court hearings on the prime minister’s schedule.
“I think elections will not be brought forward, because it’s better to let a government function for four years and then judge it. But in any case, if elections are brought forward, I’m not afraid. When I walk the streets, I feel deep affection. Everywhere,” he said, adding that he received support across Israel.
“Not only at Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem, on home turf, as they say. Everywhere I go - there are hugs, love. I myself love every Jew. Those who agree with me and those who don’t. Those I connect with and those less so. I heard that a few weeks ago, they asked Bezalel Smotrich about me, and he said he doesn’t like me that much. And I love Smotrich.”
He rejected claims that the right wing would pay a political price for the failures of October 7, saying his prewar positions on Gaza were vindicated and that he now sits in all key security forums.
"If they had listened to me, October 7 would not have happened. And let’s tell the truth: the public remembers that. Don’t you remember that they excluded me from security discussions on the claim that I only wanted war in Gaza? By the way, today, to Bibi’s credit, I’m in the cabinet, in the inner cabinet. I’m there in every security forum.”
The Justice Ministry did not provide a response to Ben-Gvir’s remarks.