Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai on Tuesday morning spoke strongly against the plan of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to establish a National Guard.

“It’s no secret that I expressed my professional reservations and warned the National Security Minister that establishing a National Guard that will be subordinate to his office is an unnecessary move that will have a very heavy price, to the point of harming the personal security of citizens,” Shabtai said at a ceremony at the Western Galilee College.

“I emphasized that the need to establish a new and separate body from the Israel Police is unclear and could harm the operational capabilities of all internal security systems in the country. A National Guard – yes, establishing another security body parallel to the Israel Police – no. A National Guard must be part of the Israel Police, operate within the police framework, and be subordinate to the commanders of the territorial forces according to the chain of command.”

“The National Guard under the Israel Police will never find itself in conflict with the law, but instead will serve it. Any disconnection from the police command will be a destruction of personal security, a waste of resources and will destroy Israel Police from within, both regarding  its operation and increasing its forces.”

The Cabinet voted on Sunday to approve the establishment of a National Guard to provide security for emergency scenarios such as the riots in mixed Israeli-Arab areas during Operation Guardians of the Walls. A professional committee comprised of representatives of Israel’s security agencies, the National Security Council, and government ministries will discuss the parameters of the National Guard and its chain of command and submit its recommendations to the Cabinet within 90 days.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)