From the Liveblog of
Monday, March 18, 2024
Ben Gvir says Israel safer after issuing 100,000 gun licenses since October 7
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Putting more weapons on the streets has made Israel safer, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir declares, celebrating the fact that his office has approved 100,000 gun licenses since October 7.
“This week we reached a milestone at the National Security Ministry: the 100,000th citizen received his firearms license,” Ben Gvir, standing in front of a poster with an image of an oversized handgun and the slogan “100K Israelis armed,” tells reporters ahead of his far-right Otzma Yehudit party’s weekly faction meeting in the Knesset.
“In fact, out of 299,354 applications submitted since the war…more than 100,000 citizens have already been approved to arm themselves because weapons save lives,” he says.
“We have seen throughout the last months how much a weapon saves lives,” he continues, stating “the dimensions of the [October 7] disaster were less” in places where “civilians could protect themselves.”
“We have also seen this in recent attacks, and I think that the work in the National Security Ministry is proving itself,” he says.
Asked about concerns relating to crime and domestic violence raised by women’s groups concerned about the influx of guns into the public sphere, Ben Gvir responds that his ministry is working to make sure that weapons only end up “in the right hands.”
Women were raped and murdered “because there were not enough weapons,” he argues, adding that he had given out permits to “tens of thousands of armed women who can now defend themselves.”
Requests for gun permits surged following October 7 and the National Security Ministry granted temporary authority to approve gun license applications to his personal staff appointees, Knesset employees, and young women performing civilian National Service volunteer duty.
According to Hebrew daily Haaretz, thousands of licenses were granted illegally. Ben Gvir intervened personally to help former spy for Israel Jonathan Pollard overcome police and court objections to his obtaining a gun license.
Ben Gvir has himself threatened people with his handgun on two occasions.
