Israeli far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir clashes with security personnel near the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, East Jerusalem.
Israeli far-right politicians have intensified their provocative rhetoric targeting Palestinians ahead of the country’s Oct. 27 elections, sharpening an already divisive campaign.
The increasingly hard-liner positions of politicians competing for the votes of a relatively small pool of far-right voters have fueled concerns that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition could become even more fragmented.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, leader of the far-right Jewish Power party and national security minister, has been among the most prominent figures on the radical right within Netanyahu’s coalition. In social media posts, he has mocked Palestinian prisoners and called for tougher policies against them.
His latest campaign video, created using artificial intelligence, has also drawn widespread condemnation in the international media.
The video shows Ben-Gvir on a conveyor belt apparently destroying the dreams of Palestinian prisoners and leaving them weak and despondent.
The post, captioned “We promised, we delivered,” was removed from Ben-Gvir’s X account after receiving 4 million views.
Bezalel Smotrich, leader of the Religious Zionism Party and finance minister, has pledged to expand illegal settlements and alter the demographic makeup of the Negev and Galilee, where large Arab
populations reside.
Ofer Winter, a retired brigadier general and leader of the new far-right Israel Our Home party, has said: “There will never be a Palestinian state here. The solution in Gaza is simple: emigration.”
Yoseph Haddad, the second-ranking figure in Winter’s party, said: “It is time for the Arab community to have representatives who work for them, not for Gaza, Jenin and Ramallah. I despise them.”
Other far-right politicians have likewise advocated abolishing the prospect of a Palestinian state, expanding Israeli control and forcing Palestinians to leave.
Moshe Feiglin, head of the Identity Party and a former deputy speaker of the Knesset, for instance, drew attention last year by declaring: “Every child in Gaza is an enemy.”
