Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara informed the High Court on Wednesday that an absolute order must be issued instructing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to dismiss National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
Shortly afterward, Netanyahu expressed his backing for the national security minister.
The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) stated that Ben-Gvir will continue to serve in his portfolio, "as was announced several weeks ago."
The PMO also sharply criticized Baharav-Miara for sending the letter to the High Court during Israel’s ongoing war with Iran, calling the move "inconceivable."
"It is inconceivable that in the midst of an existential war against Iran, led by [US President Donald] Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu, the attorney general is asking the High Court of Justice to issue an absolute order instructing the prime minister to dismiss the minister of national security, who is responsible for internal security during wartime,” the PMO stated.
The PMO added that the Attorney General’s request to dismiss Ben-Gvir “undermines the foundations of democracy, shatters the principle of separation of powers, and contradicts Basic Law: The Government.
In January, Baharav-Miara wrote to the High Court that Ben-Gvir was abusing his authority as national security minister and Netanyahu must explain why he had not dismissed him.
Baharav-Miara's new Wednesday letter to the High Court sparked a political storm, as Ben-Gvir, along with other ministers and coalition lawmakers, further accused the attorney general of hindering war efforts by sending it.
The timing comes as both politicians in the opposition and coalition have called for unity during Operation Roaring Lion against Iran.
Ben-Gvir responded that “at a time when the State of Israel is in one of the most fateful and important wars in its history, a dismissed criminal official is trying to advance a governmental coup in a democratic state and remove an elected official from office."
“There is no precedent in the history of democratic countries in which a bureaucrat fires an elected official, Gali Baharav-Miara thinks we are in Iran, and soon she and her fellow criminal bureaucrats will set up Revolutionary Guards here, democracy will prevail!!!” he added.
Justice Minister Yariv Levin responded that “The dismissed attorney general has not stopped for a moment from undermining the work of the government, even during wartime.”
Levin called firing Ben-Gvir “unlawful,” claiming that no judge or attorney general has the authority to replace the Knesset and the prime minister and determine who will serve as a minister.
“The fact that Attorney-General Baharav-Miara chooses to deal with this at this time once again proves that she is unfit to serve in any position. Her presence hinders the war effort," he stated.
Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana (Likud) responded that while the "opposition and coalition are united in the existential struggle against our enemies and Israeli citizens are defending themselves against enemy missiles, the madness, intoxication of power, and lust for dominance of the judicial system know no satiety."
He added that the opinion of Baharav-Miara during wartime “is yet another spit in the face of democracy, the rule of the people.”
Meanwhile, opposition lawmakers expressed support for the attorney general, calling for Ben-Gvir’s dismissal, though some opposition party leaders, such as MK Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid), and Blue and White leader MK Benny Gantz did not comment.
The Democrats leader, Yair Golan, stated, “Full backing to the attorney general. Itamar Ben-Gvir is a convicted criminal, a dangerous pyromaniac who has taken over the Israel Police."
MK Gilad Kariv (The Democrats) said, “Ben-Gvir’s takeover of the police is a tangible danger both to Israeli democracy and to the personal security of Israel’s citizens, and his tenure must be ended immediately.”
'Ben-Gvir is abusing his authority'
In the letter to the High Court in January, the attorney general wrote that Ben-Gvir “is abusing his authority in order to improperly influence the activities of Israel Police in the most sensitive areas of law enforcement and investigations, and is harming basic democratic principles.”
Later in February, the High Court ruled that Netanauhu must explain why he does not intend to dismiss Ben-Gvir, issuing a conditional order on the case.
The order was issued primarily because the court had not received any response on the matter from Netanyahu himself, as the figure who is ultimately and originally in charge of the appointment.
The tensions come amid the ongoing rift between the government and the judiciary. The government unanimously voted to fire Baharav-Miara in August; however, the High Court immediately issued an injunction, freezing the decision until it could undergo judicial review.
The case on dismissing Ben-Gvir was scheduled to be heard in the High Court on March 24.
Sarah Ben-Nun contributed to this report.