Shabtai urges successor to keep politics out of police in first speech since leaving force

Former Israel Police chief Kobi Shabtai urges his successor to ensure the force remains apolitical, in what appears to be a swipe at far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.

“I expect that whoever replaces me will be careful to maintain the police as an apolitical body, as a professional and impartial system, and will know how to separate considerations and pressures of the political echelon with professional needs,” he says in his first speech as a civilian, at the Western Galilee Academic College.

Shabtai left the role last week, having served for three and a half years, and 39 years overall in the police.

Shabtai and Ben Gvir clashed repeatedly once the minister took up his position and attempted to exert greater control over the police, including regarding how officers responded to different types of demonstrations.

Before becoming a minister, Shabtai had accused Ben Gvir of instigating the unprecedented violence between Jewish and Arab Israelis during Operation Guardian of the Walls in 2021.