Despite deal with AG, Ben Gvir denies ceding power over police promotions
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir on Tuesday denied ceding authority to appoint and promote police officers, a week after reaching a compromise with Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara that obliges him to scale back his involvement in such matters.
“For [police] appointments, the authority remains with me,” he told Army Radio. “I appoint, I am the one who approves. They hate me because I brought 800 interviews to my ministry, since I appoint each one. I interview him, I vet him.”
The deal aimed to curb the far-right leader’s interference in operational police matters, specifically when it comes to appointing and promoting cops.
The attorney general demanded Ben Gvir accept the restrictions before she agreed to defend him in the High Court of Justice against petitions calling for his dismissal.
The four petitions were supposed to be heard on Tuesday, but the court canceled the hearing a day prior in light of the compromise, requesting that Baharav-Miara update judges on the deal’s status by July 15.
The compromise barred Ben Gvir from interviewing officers up to the rank of superintendent for promotion, distancing him from........
© The Times of Israel
