The challenges facing the Israeli police are not necessarily unique compared to the rest of the world. While an ideal police force may exist elsewhere, the Israeli police have struggled for decades with issues such as corruption, crime, excessive use of force, abuse of authority, and incidents of physical and sexual violence, as well as attempts to cover up these problems. These issues and the responses to them are relatively well-known to the public.
However, since National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir took office, a new and explosive dimension has been added to the existing problems within the Israeli police – a political one. Let’s break down what is happening to the police in the shadow of the war while most public and media attention has shifted elsewhere.
Festival of Appointments
Police Captain Meir Svisa’s name came to public attention as recently as last year. In March 2023, during the first of the “days of disobedience,” hundreds protested against judicial reform in central Tel Aviv during the workday, resulting in significant clashes with the police.
Capt. Swisa was repeatedly seen throwing a flash-bang grenade into the crowd without looking where he was aiming. During the investigation, he claimed to have thrown the grenade into an open area, but additional footage clearly depicts the grenade detonating amidst a group of individuals. Seven individuals injured by the grenades filed complaints against police. One protester had his ear ripped off. Although an investigation was launched against Swisa, it was closed shortly afterward, and he was awarded a badge of honor.
Early in the war, Swisa was also filmed using brutal force against an elderly protester without any apparent reason (video available in article). This incident is still under investigation. Despite this, Meir Swisa was promoted this week and appointed head of the police department in South Tel Aviv. Police state that the promotion has not yet taken effect due to the ongoing investigation.
The questionable appointments extend beyond the district and precinct levels. Minister Ben-Gvir previously selected Avshalom Peled as the next head of the Israel Police, having already promoted him in 2023. Despite Peled’s accomplishments, his police career is far from untainted.
He was previously under investigation for suspected corrupt ties with Judea Regional Council head Moshe Dadon. Recordings of a phone conversation, the transcript of which was published again this week by Haaretz newspaper, clearly show Peled asking Dadon to resolve the issue of an illegally built plot on his property in exchange for a promotion of the regional council head’s relative. The publication also reveals that when Peled was first invited for inquiry, he persistently lied to the investigator until he learned there were recordings of their conversations. Despite this, the prosecutor’s office closed the case due to insufficient evidence. Currently, Peled’s appointment remains frozen pending review by a special commission.
🟢 UPDATE: JUNE 2024 According to various estimates, Minister Ben-Gvir tries another way to appoint Peled: firing Commissioner Shabtai ahead of time and making an interim appointment to bypass the commission.
Ben-Gvir had previously offered the position of police chief twice to Shimon Lavie, the former police commander of the northern district. Following the Mount Meron tragedy in 2021, which resulted in the deaths of 45 people during the Lag BaOmer holiday, Lavie admitted responsibility and resigned. The ongoing investigation into the tragedy motivated Lavie’s rejection of Ben-Gvir’s offer, but Lavie noted that Ben-Gvir did not give up and offered him the position again.
Police leadership changes have not only involved appointments but also the resignations of several officers at senior levels. Among these, the most prominent was Ami Eshed’s resignation as police commander in the Gush Dan district last year. Eshed attributed his departure to significant political pressure and Minister Ben-Gvir’s direct interference in police operations. Ben-Gvir had demanded that the police in Tel Aviv adopt a stricter stance against protesters opposing judicial reform, whereas Eshed insisted on maintaining a balance between preserving law and order and upholding the right to demonstrate.
“I could have easily complied with the ministry’s demands, used more force, and filled the hospitals with injured demonstrators. We could have cleared the highway in minutes at the cost of broken bones and smashed heads and ultimately lost public confidence in the police. But I have raised generations of officers to respect the limits of force and uphold the sanctity of our civil contract.”
Another controversial promotion was awarded to Nissim Guetta, who was filmed using excessive force on protesters in Jerusalem in 2021. Initially convicted by the district court, Guetta’s suspension was later overturned on appeal. The appeal court claimed that protesters initiated force against the police officer, though video evidence depicts only minor interaction before Guetta aggressively engaged and beat several demonstrators. Following the reversal of his conviction, the Minister of Internal Security promoted Guetta to commander of the Judea and Samaria District.
וואו איזה תיעוד של אלימות מצד סגן ניצב, ככל הנראה הערב בירושלים במהלך התהלוכה פה.
קרדיט לא ידוע וגם לא ברור מה הרקע להתנהגות הזאת, מחכה לתגובה מהמשטרה אבל על פניו מעצר אלים מאוד. pic.twitter.com/kv0golqyGP— Josh Breiner (@JoshBreiner) August 22, 2020
It was after the Guetta incident that Ben-Gvir turned to police officers during an interview on the Channel’s 14 Patriots program and stated bluntly:
“If you’ve been targeted or have been featured in an article in Haaretz (note the left-wing newspaper that extensively covers police and military misconduct), come to me, and we’ll discuss your potential for promotion.”
At that time, Ben-Gvir accused the protest movement of “shaming” police officers, a term he used to describe publicly disclosing the names and photos of officers who had used excessive force against demonstrators. However, being an MK, he viewed this as a legitimate method of identifying officers he had personally clashed with.
השר איתמר בן גביר יצא נגד שיימינג של שוטרים שהואשמו באלימות, אבל לא תמיד הוא היה נגד #מהצד_השני עם @guyzo pic.twitter.com/AGCu5o8VTD
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) July 31, 2023
Following such statements and consistent policies in this direction, it is unsurprising that over the past year, and particularly in recent months, there have been increasing reports of abusive police actions against protesters opposing government policies but not only. Voices within the police also validate concerns that brutality and excessive use of force have become significant criteria in evaluating officers positively.
🟢 UPDATE: JUNE 2024 Haaretz cites a number of other police appointments by the Minister in its recent article.
Growing political violence
On Tuesday, May 7, the Israel Bar Association’s Constitutional Law and Human Rights Forum submitted a request to the government’s legal advisor and the police legal advisor, urging them to urgently address the rising case of unwarranted arrests of anti-government protesters and police violence against them.
The claims against the police include escalating violence against peaceful protesters, unjustified arrests, night detentions, and handcuffing without legal grounds. Additionally, there are complaints about delayed investigations and the prolonged detention of individuals before their release.
On the same topic, a special session of the parliamentary National Security Commission was held at the initiative of Knesset members Gilad Kariv of the Labor Party and Meirav Ben-Ari of the Yesh Atid Party. During this session, demonstrators who had suffered from police violence provided heavy testimony.
Retired Armored Forces Colonel Shemi Athar, 76, who suffers from PTSD after the Yom Kippur War, witnessed police violence while preparing for a demonstration:
“We gathered at my house to prepare for the demonstration in front of the Prime Minister’s residence. In my private parking lot, there was a truck with our cardboard tank, the symbol of our movement. After 20 minutes, a large police force led by Lt. Col. Amit Polak, Hadera’s police chief, arrived and threatened to arrest the truck driver if he didn’t leave. I told the driver, as my guest, that he could get out of the truck and come into my house. At that moment, I was forcefully pushed away, and five policemen twisted my arms and dragged me into a police car. I did not say a word to those policemen.”
הסרטון הזה ירתיח לכם את הדם.
משטרה של חוליגנים. להקיא.
מעניין מה עמית פולק יספר יום אחד לנכדיו. מה גרם לו להתקרנף ככה. לאבד צלם. pic.twitter.com/3mxGVOLrbL— Ben Caspit בן כספית (@BenCaspit) April 15, 2024
“During the 1973 war, I suffered a concussion, leg injuries, and lost vision in one eye, resulting in severe PTSD. I cried out about my condition, as did Prof. Kobi Sivan from Sheba Hospital, who was also detained, warning of the danger to my life. Despite this, they used even more force on me. I was confined in a police vehicle with almost no air, struggling to breathe. My wife and I pleaded with the police to at least open a window, but she was threatened with arrest. Eventually, I lost consciousness and woke up at the police station, where I broke down and cried like a baby. I was charged with assaulting a police officer.
The battle in which I was wounded in ’73 was a living hell. The same day I was wounded in Sinai, my brother was wounded in the Golan Heights. Forty years later, my brother committed suicide because he never received therapy after the war…
For the past four and a half years, I have been in therapy. But one ‘doctor,’ Police Lt. Col. Amit Polak, has managed to set me back three years in my treatment. And even that wasn’t enough for him. The day after the incident, he shows up at my house, spends an hour searching for something, even goes to my neighbors, asking if they have security cameras. Now, I have nightmares about him strangling me in the night. I can’t sleep, I scream so loud until I take couple of pills to go back to sleep. My daughter, who has a disability, is also unable to function because she’s afraid the police will raid the house again. It drives me crazy. How can such a person serve in the Israeli police?”
הקשיבו לדבריו המצמררים של שמי עטר, אל”מ במיל, הלום קרב ממלחמת יום הכיפורים.
שמי, שהוכה באכזריות ובאלימות בידי שוטרים בחצר ביתו, מספר על סנ”צ עמית פולק שסימן אותו כמטרה למעקב.
הקשיבו לסיוט שהאיש היקר הזה עובר מאז אותה תקיפה.@lochamei pic.twitter.com/cxc4NT8rLl— Yoav Glasner (@Yoglas74) May 7, 2024
Rina Nanda Waxman, 55, who still uses a wheelchair and has a bandaged arm due to injuries sustained at the April 6 demonstration in Caesarea, also shared her harrowing experience:
“ארבעה שוטרים לקחו אותי והטיחו אותי ליד הזינזאנה”-רינה נגדה וקסמן ,שנפצעה בהפגנה בקיסריה, מספרת על התנהלות המשטרה.
צפו בעדות המלאה בוועדה לביטחון לאומי. pic.twitter.com/M5vgSmhmri— ערוץ כנסת (@KnessetT) May 7, 2024
“I was standing peacefully with a placard that read ‘You’re in charge – you’re to blame’ alongside my friends from the Yom Kippur War Soldiers movement – the very people who saved this country 50 years ago. Without any provocation, a police officer approached me and slapped me twice. He then attempted to push me over a barrier, threatening, ‘I will show you now.’ My elderly friends, who are my parents’ age, somehow managed to pull me away from the officer, but he then targeted Yolanda*. Moments later, more than ten police officers surrounded me. A woman embraced me as I trembled in fear, unsure of what to do. They placed us together briefly, separated us, and eventually forced me into a police bus.
I have previously admitted this, so I am no longer ashamed to recount it. At that moment, I desperately needed to use the restroom, and my body reacted accordingly. Despite my pleas, the police officers denied me this basic human right, and I ended up wetting myself. As a 55-year-old woman, I endured immense shame because of the officers’ disrespectful treatment. Additionally, as a woman, I feared for my dignity while in detention, if you understand what I mean.
But that wasn’t all. I waited at the station for three and a half hours until the same officer who had assaulted me arrived. He yelled at me, insulted me, and called me crazy for making up stories. Then, during the investigation, I discovered I was accused of attacking the officer, causing him injuries, and forcibly moving barriers, despite video evidence showing the barriers were stationary and him dragging me through them.
This is a blatant lie to cover up the officer’s violence. I never imagined I would face such humiliation in the country to which I and my family immigrated.
When I appeared in court, the prison officer who brought us in referred to us as “stock,” literally saying, “I brought you stock.”
I will stop here, as I do not have the strength to continue.”
* Dr. Yolanda Yavor, an active participant in the protests, attempted to assist Rina when she herself was arrested in a manner that was quite abrupt. Overall, Dr. Yavor has been arrested nine times.
Unfortunately, Rina Waxman and Yolanda Yavor are not the first nor the last women to endure abuse and humiliation that clearly exceeds police authority. Sivan Schwartz, an activist and frequent participant in anti-government protests, addressed the Knesset about her problematic arrest experience:
*אזהרת טריגר – אלימות משטרתית קשה*
ביום שלישי האחרון, הגיעה סיוון שוורץ, ממובילות החזית הורודה בחיפה, שנעצרה בהפגנה בירושלים ביום ראשון לספר את עדותה על המעצר המטלטל שעבר עליה בועדת הצעירים שהתכנסה כדי לדון בשמירה על זכות ההפגנה.
דבריה הם קשים וכואבים, לא פשוטים אך חשובים מאין… pic.twitter.com/wrCpPyg2cv— 🎗 Naama Lazimi – נעמה לזימי (@naamalazimi) April 4, 2024
“Five policemen tackled me despite my lack of resistance, which was later falsely claimed. However, everything is recorded on tape. I was detained without informing any of my colleagues or loved ones, including my wife and family, who were kept in the dark for hours.
I repeatedly requested medical assistance, presenting evidence of my disability to the police, but my requests were ignored. Although an ambulance was called twice, I was not allowed to be taken to the emergency room until 3 am without informing anyone. I didn’t just need medical attention; I was suffering from water poisoning. I vomited and wet myself.
Instead of an ambulance, two policemen drove me to the hospital, placing me in the car with tightly closed, painful handcuffs. They mocked me, driving recklessly without securing me with a seatbelt. I nearly lost consciousness, banging my head against the sides and vomiting again. They opened the windows and played the song “Will you remember me, Sivan?” When we arrived, one of them asked sarcastically if I enjoyed the ride. From there, I was taken to the hospital for a medical examination. I am limping, my leg visibly injured, as is my entire body and spirit.
The same female police officer searched me multiple times, forcing me to strip naked despite my suffering from anorexia. I am an advocate for girls with anorexia, a cause that is deeply significant to me; I’ve known dozens who have died from this damn disease. When the ambulance arrived and I informed them of my chronic condition, the police officers started mocking my illness.
I endured physical and moral abuse, humiliation, and even political persecution. The police officers shamelessly said, ‘Come on, show her. She’s protesting against the government.’ There’s no shame left.”
So what’s going on with the police, and how serious is it?
As mentioned before, the issues of police violence, corruption, and other misconduct are longstanding and did not begin with the current government’s inauguration.
The Police Investigation Unit (Machash) was established within the prosecutor’s office in 1992 in response to these issues. However, the unit has faced numerous challenges over the years — initially wielding significant power, now criticized for its weakness, dependency on the prosecutor’s office, bureaucratic delays in investigations, and the widespread issue of unresolved complaints. These shortcomings have been well-documented and publicized, as seen in investigative works such as Roni Singer’s 2019 documentary.
Despite the unit’s evident weaknesses, Minister Ben-Gvir continues criticizing the unit and attempts to interfere with its operations. He has argued that the already limited and partial investigations into police and military misconduct “only harm national security.”
Just a month ago, Roni Singer released another documentary as part of the investigative series “זמן אמת” on Channel 11.
The documentary covers many topics, some of which we have already covered in this piece. It also delves into the stories of two women, Yarden Man and Yael Abadi. Yarden Man was swiftly accused of assaulting Conservation Minister Idit Silman under highly questionable circumstances. Yael Abadi faced allegations of attacking Knesset Member Shalom Danino. She was detained for several days for spray-painting the number 1,400 (representing the official October 7 death toll at the time) on his parking lot gate. According to both women, they were treated as dangerous criminals during interrogations and subjected to politically motivated questions about their voting preferences and involvement in protest movements.
Former police officers criticized both cases, with State Prosecutor Amit Aisman labeling the investigation and police conduct in the second case as a violation of the rule of law.
In addition to addressing questionable appointments, the documentary highlights the atmosphere of chaos within the police force, including concerns over weapon purchases without proper tendering and oversight. It also reveals the Ministry’s direct communication with district commanders, bypassing the police chief, and other troubling precedents.
However, perhaps the central message and concern of the film is the active politicization of law enforcement, a phenomenon unprecedented until now. Several retired police officers who held top positions in the organization, along with anonymous sources within the police force, express similar concerns and strongly criticize the actions of both the police and the ministry. As retired Lieutenant Colonel Yigal Hadad, with 34 years of service in the police force, rightly observes in the documentary, police appointments should be of as much, if not more, interest to the public than judicial ones.
What was a cause of public outcry and controversy last year is now proceeding much more smoothly and unhindered under the cover of war. Initially, Israeli society was outraged by the appointment of an convicted felon with renowned radical views as a minister in charge of law enforcement. However, over time, people became accustomed to it. Initially, the public was outraged by the minister’s brazen interference in police operational matters. Now, we almost take it for granted. The promotions of violent police officers were initially surprising, but today, such cases are no longer an exception; they are becoming the rule.
It’s important to acknowledge a few critical points. Policing is a complex and demanding job in a challenging environment that requires high levels of discipline and stress tolerance. Situations can vary significantly, and video footage doesn’t always capture the full context of events. Additionally, the notion of “the customer is always right” doesn’t apply here. While confrontations between citizens and police officers inherently involve unequal power dynamics, protests can also attract violent individuals and provocateurs seeking conflict.
The ability to assess situations calmly and maintain composure even in the most intense circumstances demands the highest moral standards from police officers and a clear commitment to serving the public. Despite our aspirations, we cannot realistically expect every officer to embody these qualities. Some may enter the profession seeking power and authority, while others may believe their political beliefs justify the judgment of others. Therefore, moral integrity and complete political neutrality within the higher ranks of law enforcement are absolutely crucial. That is precisely why the current state of affairs within the police is so concerning.
Meanwhile, mainstream media tend to cover police-related issues rather selectively, let alone the police attitude toward minorities, which receives even less attention. It only underscores the vital role of such independent outlets like Haaretz and Shakuf. Israeli citizens should receive explicit and honest information about institutions assigned to their protection.
Still, there is no need to fall into hysteria and view every police officer as an adversary of civil society from now on. Each incident should be evaluated on its own merits without rushing to judgments. However, it doesn’t take an expert to admit that recent events are clearly out of the line and should worry everyone, regardless of political affiliation.
So it’s high time we asked ourselves some hard questions.
Is this the type of police force we desire? Officers brutalizing and aggressively targeting women, older people, and war veterans with disabilities who pose no threat to society beyond expressing their political beliefs; law enforcement officers callously mistreating sick and traumatized individuals during arrests; a police leadership permitting a minister with extreme radical views to intervene in an institution mandated to remain apolitical; violence and corruption not only going unpunished but even becoming grounds for promotion. Is this the direction we envision for our state?
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