Cabinet okays Roni Alsheich as new police chief

The cabinet unanimously approves the appointment of Shin Bet number two Roni Alsheich as Israel’s next police commissioner.

He is expected to start his three-year term on November 11, when he will replace interim commissioner Bentzi Sau, and will hold office until 2018. As a police outsider, Alsheich will begin an intensive period of study over the next month alongside Sau.

Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan lauds Alsheich’s credentials and the knowledge he has gained during his time with the country’s internal security service.

Shin Bet deputy chief Roni Alsheich, a candidate for Israel police commissioner, arrives at the Prime Minister’s Office, October 1, 2015, to testify before the Turkel Commission on senior public service appointments. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

“Roni is a senior commander with much experience in the war on terror and a close familiarity with police work,” Erdan says. “Roni is a professional who advanced many security reforms and I am confident that his professional abilities, along with the values that he brings with him, will enable him to lead the Israel Police forward and to deal with every challenge it faces.”

Officials hope the appointment will bring an end to a tumultuous era for the police, which has been without a permanent chief since July and was rocked in recent years by a string of corruption and sexual harassment scandals.