Ben Gvir tells officers to shoot ‘terrorists’ who don’t pose threat, then backtracks

Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir on Thursday urged Border Police officers to shoot at any “terrorist” they see, even if they do not pose a threat — a violation of the rules of engagement in both the police and the Israel Defense Forces — before later claiming his comments were misquoted.

“You have complete backing from me. When your life is in danger or you see a terrorist — even if he does not endanger you — shoot. I have your back,” Ben Gvir told officers from the Border Police’s elite Yasam undercover unit during a visit to a base in the West Bank, according to the original statement from his office.

“A hair on your head [harmed] is worth 1,000 terrorists,” Ben Gvir said, according to the statement.

The minister later issued a clarification, claiming that his office had misquoted him, and that he meant they should shoot any “armed terrorist” and not wait until the latter shoots first.

In the updated statement clarifying the remarks, Ben Gvir’s office also said the minister’s “position on targeted killings [of terrorists] is known, and it is necessary to continue to eliminate terrorists from the air so long as the operational situation allows.”

Ben Gvir has long advocated for loosening open-fire rules, claiming that they hamstring security forces in the field and put their lives in danger.

The importance of adhering to open fire limitations in saving innocent lives was highlighted in December after soldiers mistakenly shot to death three Israeli hostages who managed to escape Hamas captivity in Gaza City’s Shejaiya neighborhood, in violation of military regulations.

And in late November, an IDF reservist shot dead Israeli civilian Yuval Castleman after the latter had neutralized a terrorist at the scene of a terror attack in Jerusalem. In a video from the scene, Castleman put down his weapon and raised his hands in the air, shouting “Don’t shoot” at the reservist, who nevertheless shot him in contravention of open fire orders.

According to a recent Channel 12 report, a Steering Committee formed to write up recommendations on the establishment of a National Guard — a force proposed by Ben Gvir to be deployed in times of ethnic unrest — has also drawn up recommendations for easing live fire rules during a state of emergency.

The considerations were also reported in October by Kan News.

“Open fire rules will be adapted in relation to violent riots during wartime,” the recommendation wrote, Channel 12 reported.

Situations in which lethal force could be used included “widespread violent rioting with the use of weapons that threaten government institutions; infiltration of isolated communities that threaten its residents; blocking roads during a state of emergency in a way that is detrimental to the continuous functioning of the IDF, harming its ability to move forces and supplies to the front.”

The report in October said police wanted to revisit the conclusions made by the Or Commission, set up to investigate a round of inter-communal violence in October 2000, in which 13 people were killed in clashes with police — 12 Arab Israelis and one Palestinian. An Israeli Jew was killed when his car was stoned by Arab rioters.

The panel found that police used excessive force during the deadly events in 2000, and determined that live fire was an inappropriate method of riot dispersal. Since then, police have only been allowed to use non-lethal means to disperse riots, and can only use live fire if they feel their life is in danger.