Officers raid Kfar Tapuah HQ, paramilitary-linked Jerusalem internet cafe.
By YAAKOV KATZ
Large police forces raided buildings and institutions affiliated with the Jewish Legion (Gdud Haivri) paramilitary organization in Kfar Tapuah and Jerusalem on Sunday.
The raids came after OC Central Command Maj.-Gen. Yair Naveh issued an order outlawing the organization which is suspected of being associated with the Kach movement.
Police closed the organization's headquarters in Kfar Tapuah and its famous canine unit, which provided guard dogs to nearby settlements for protection from Palestinian infiltrations. The Jewish Legion was established four years ago and is said to today have several dozen members.
Jerusalem police simultaneously shut down a city Internet cafe run by head of the Jewish Legion Yekutiel Ben-Yaakov. Police said that the cafe, located near the city's central bus station, was also used as a meeting place for right-wing extremists. It was ordered closed for fifteen days by the Jerusalem police chief. Four people operating the shop were detained for questioning, and computers and various documents were seized during the raid.
Ben-Yaakov rejected police claims that the Jewish Legion was a terrorist movement. He said he planned to establish a new movement called "Jews and Judeans" which would continue training guard dogs and bringing Jews from around the world to volunteer in Israel.
"The Jewish Legion is about Jews defending Jews with dogs and other legal means," Ben-Yaakov said. "But if you are a government that gives guns to terrorists to kill Jews than you wouldn't be happy with an organization that works to protect Jews."