National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir decided to dismiss Tel Aviv district commander Ami Eshed, a decision which was frozen by Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara on Friday.
According to Israeli media, the decision was delivered to Eshed by police chief Kobi Shabtai on Thursday, in a particularly difficult conversation between the two.
The district commander attacked Shabtai, telling him that he "destroyed the police."
In the meantime, after the district commander was informed of the decision to depose him, Eshed took an unusual step by using the radio to address the police officers of the district, while they were deployed at the time in the middle of the demonstrations in Tel Aviv against the judicial reform.
"Policemen and officers of the Tel Aviv district, we are going through a significant event of demonstrations in the district and have a significant national responsibility," he noted at the beginning of the message.
"I ask you not to listen to all the background noise, including what is related to me personally, and to behave in a professional, serious and high-quality manner as you know. The task is not over yet, it continues until the last moment," he added.
Ben-Gvir attacks 'leftist' decision by attorney-general
As mentioned, the attorney-general announced on Thursday that the dismissal of Ami Eshed, which Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir ordered, will be frozen until the end of the legal investigation out of concern about the legality of the procedure.
Ben-Gvir attacked this reaction and called it "leftist and biased," while the police chief announced that the district commander will continue to fulfill his duties in accordance with the A-G's announcement.
In a statement issued on Friday, the A-G announced that she conducted a preliminary inquiry into the procedure for the transfer of the Tel Aviv district commander in the police, Ami Eshed, which raised serious concerns regarding the legality and correctness of the procedure, including the considerations underlying the decision, the timing of the announcement and its background.