Senior prison service official questioned; Ben Gvir blasts ‘coup attempt’
Two police officers also probed in same affair involving breach of trust, ethical issues; key suspect said close to far-right minister, who accuses AG of intimidation
The Department of Internal Police Investigations said Monday that it had detained for questioning a senior officer in the Israel Prison Service on suspicion of obstructing an investigation and breach of trust.
Two Israel Police officers were also detained in the case.
Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, whose ministry oversees both the police and the prison service, accused Justice Ministry officials of attempting a “coup” and of intimidating officers to prevent them from implementing his policies.
Many details of the case were covered by a gag order, including the identity of those involved.
Hebrew media outlets reported that the senior prison officer is close to Ben Gvir, as is one of the police officers.
The prison official is suspected of obstruction of an investigation and breach of trust, the DIPI said in a statement that said the interrogation came in the wake of an undercover operation.
A source familiar with the developments told media that when DIPI officers approached the senior prison officer’s vehicle outside his home in the morning, his security detail at first feared it was an attempted hit and drew their weapons.
One of the police officers, a senior commander, is suspected of integrity issues, breach of duty, breach of trust, and abuse of his position. The other officer, a superintendent, is suspected of bribery.
According to Hebrew media reports, the prison officer is suspected of having asked a female police officer to request that another person remove certain messages on the Telegram app that were deemed detrimental to Ben Gvir. According to the Ynet outlet, the officer indicated to the third person that his career advancement would depend on him agreeing to the request. The outlet did not offer any further details on the role or position of the third person.
The Kan public broadcaster reported that the police officer has for some months been suspended from her role in the service.
Senior police officers were said to have been “shocked” at the developments, while Kan reported that many are remaining unusually tight-lipped about the matter.
Ben Gvir claimed the arrests were part of his ongoing dispute with Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara over her push to have him ousted for his repeated interventions in operational police matters and his alleged politicization of police promotions.
“The attorney general and the State Prosecutor’s Office are using the Department of Internal Police Investigations to deter a very senior officer in the Prison Service and police officers from carrying out my policy and that of the right-wing government,” Ben Gvir wrote on X.
He declared that “a clear red line has been crossed” and called the move “an attempted coup.”
Baharav-Miara had notified Ben Gvir in the morning that the officers would be detained. His Otzma Yehudit party swiftly put out a statement — that preempted the DIPI announcement — saying that the party’s weekly faction meeting, scheduled for the morning, had been delayed due to an “urgent meeting that came up at the last moment.”
Ben Gvir was to hold a press conference later in the day.
Haaretz reported that one of the detained police officers was appointed by Ben Gvir to a senior position in the force’s West Bank division. According to the outlet, the Shin Bet security service is annoyed at how things are being run in the division, and in particular, the department tasked with dealing with Jewish terrorism. According to the report, the Shin Bet feels the unit is not doing its job and has become disconnected from the Shin Bet’s department tackling the same issue.
The questioning of the officers came a week after five people who had previously worked in Ben Gvir’s office were investigated by the police major crimes unit in a probe into suspicions that the ministry issued firearms permits without authority.
Ben Gvir in that matter similarly accused Baharav-Miara of conducting “a coup against democracy.”
Baharav-Miara has frequently clashed with members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing government over some of the unprecedentedly far-reaching policies it has sought to advance. The disagreements have escalated amid ongoing investigations into the premier’s staff.
Ben Gvir and several others have not been shy about publicly demanding Baharav-Miara’s ouster. Last week, Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi said that 13 ministers had signed a document demanding the government fire the attorney general.
