After court hearing, Ben Gvir says he’ll approve promotion of officer whose advancement he blocked

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir announces he will approve the promotion of Ch. Supt. Ruti Hauslich to the rank of commander, after having refused to sign off on the police detective’s advancement since last summer.

The far-right minister’s announcement comes after he agreed last week to reevaluate his decision to block her promotion at the behest of a Jerusalem District Court judge, during a hearing on Hauslich’s petition against him.

Hauslich, who deals with incitement-related probes in police’s investigations and intelligence division, is the second female police detective whose promotion Ben Gvir has refused to approve, bucking the counsel of senior brass.

The minister claimed in last week’s hearing that Hauslich misled a Knesset committee during a discussion on incitement-related investigations, for not conveying the position of the Jerusalem District police during testimony she gave before lawmakers.

However, Hauslich’s lawyer, whose argument was accepted by the judge, contended that she did what was expected of her at the meeting by presenting the stance of the branch she serves in, the investigations and intelligence division, which is responsible for handling incitement probes.

The lawyer further claimed that Ben Gvir’s stonewalling was part of a series of larger “struggles between the minister and certain officials in the investigations and intelligence division.”

In March, the Jerusalem District Court ordered Ben Gvir to sign off the promotion of Ch. Supt. Rinat Saban, who had given testimony in the graft trial of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The judge in the case said Ben Gvir’s refusal was likely motivated by “extraneous considerations.”

Last week, the High Court of Justice told Ben Gvir, Netanyahu and the attorney general to reach an agreement to curb any undue influence by Ben Gvir on police work.