Ben Gvir boasts terror supporters fear him; Gotliv calls Herzog ‘pet Jew’ after president’s clash with Otzma Yehudit lawmakers

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party says he is proud to be “the only one that supporters of terror are afraid of,” while the party’s No. 2 MK Tally Gotliv accuses President Isaac Herzog of acting like a “pet Jew,” in separate posts on X responding to the president’s remarks about Arab voters.

Ben Gvir writes that he “will continue to act to turn the lives of terrorists in prisons into hell, to demolish illegal homes and to fight terrorism without compromise.”

His post follows Herzog’s suggestion during consultations at the President’s Residence that strong Arab turnout may have been driven by opposition to Ben Gvir’s treatment of the community during his tenure as national security minister.

Gotliv, meanwhile, criticizes Herzog for questioning whether Arab citizens were motivated to vote by Ben Gvir’s actions.

“Only a pet Jew, the kind our enemies like, would dare wonder – while an investigation is underway into a mega-terror attack in Israel, involving millions upon millions in funding from hostile actors to influence Israel’s election – whether Arabs flocked to vote because Minister Ben Gvir did his job,” she writes, referring to the unsubstantiated allegations of foreign interference in last week’s elections.

“Speaking of pet Jews, Mr. President, they mock you and everyone blind to the conspiracy of terror supporters operating from within us to eliminate the Jewish state,” Gotliv says.

“I suggest you be a powerful Jew like Itamar Ben Gvir and the unconfused members of Otzma Yehudit,” she concludes.