Itamar Ben-Gvir
Pushing maximalist escalation on every front — West Bank home demolitions, Lebanon ceasefire rejection, Temple Mount provocations, prison harshening — while facing a new U.S. Justice Department war crimes complaint filed June 28 ahead of his scheduled July 7-8 visit to New York, plus ICC investigation, criminal probes in Italy and France, and travel bans from eight or more countries.
Itamar Ben-Gvir is running a maximalist escalation campaign on every front while a global legal dragnet tightens around him. On June 28, the Hind Rajab Foundation filed a U.S. Justice Department war crimes complaint accusing him of systematic torture, murder, and forced displacement through the Israeli Prison Service since 2022, citing at least 46 Palestinian prison deaths. The foundation is pressing U.S. authorities to block him from leaving the country during his scheduled July 7-8 visit to New York for a UN Police Chiefs Summit. The complaint layers onto an active ICC investigation, criminal probes in Italy and France tied to his video of bound flotilla detainees, and travel bans from France, Ireland, the UK, Spain, Slovenia, Canada, Australia, and Poland.
Domestically, Ben-Gvir told a June 24 Tel Aviv conference he demolished 5,700 homes in the past year and vowed to accelerate demolitions in Bedouin communities, sparking protests in Beersheba the next day. His death penalty law took effect in the West Bank via military order on May 17, making death the default sentence for Palestinians convicted of killing Israelis. He backed a bill to repeal the Oslo Accords, which Netanyahu blocked. On Lebanon, he demanded Israel reject any ceasefire, posted that all of Lebanon must burn, and proposed cutting electricity, seizing the Zahrani River, and annexing southern territory. He declared the U.S.-Iran MoU does not bind Israel, calling Iran the Nazis of the 21st century.
Netanyahu and FM Sa'ar have repeatedly condemned his conduct, with Sa'ar telling him directly he is not the face of Israel. President Herzog condemned extremist violence and detainee abuse; Ben-Gvir fired back that Herzog is unfit for office. VP Vance dismissed his Iran-deal opposition as a freakout and warned Israel cannot kill its way out of every security problem. Ben-Gvir opposed Netanyahu's June 27 announcement of a broad national government, insisting on a fully right-wing coalition instead. He is leveraging the prime minister's political vulnerability — approval at 29.4 percent, 92 percent of Israelis believing Iran won the war — to pull the coalition rightward, and each clash appears to sharpen his posture rather than restrain it.
On their plate
The Hind Rajab Foundation filed a U.S. Justice Department complaint on June 28 accusing Ben-Gvir of systematic torture, murder, and forced displacement through the Israeli Prison Service since 2022, citing at least 46 Palestinian prison deaths between October 2023 and August 2025. The foundation is urging U.S. authorities to prevent him from leaving the country during his scheduled July 7-8 visit to New York for a UN Police Chiefs Summit. Israel rejects claims of systematic abuse.
Ben-Gvir told a June 24 Tel Aviv conference he demolished 5,700 homes in the past year and vowed to continue demolishing Bedouin communities. Protests erupted in Beersheba on June 25 against land confiscation and home demolitions in the Negev. He backed a bill to repeal the Oslo Accords, calling them a national disaster, though Netanyahu blocked it. His death penalty law was implemented in the West Bank via military order on May 17, making death the default sentence for Palestinians convicted of killing Israelis. He also announced plans for Israeli settlements in Lebanon and Palestinian displacement from Gaza and the West Bank.
Ben-Gvir has repeatedly demanded Israel reject any Lebanon ceasefire, urging Netanyahu to tell Trump politely that Israel cannot agree and calling the territory an Israeli playground. After Israeli forces killed two in Lebanon, he declared all of Lebanon should be the target. He posted that a thousand Lebanese mothers must weep for every tear of an Israeli mother, prompting UK FM Yvette Cooper to call it horrendous and abhorrent and VP Vance to warn Israel cannot kill its way out of every security problem. He proposed cutting electricity to Lebanon, seizing the Zahrani River, arresting family members of Hezbollah fighters, and annexing southern Lebanese territory.
The ICC is investigating Ben-Gvir alongside Smotrich, Defense Minister Katz, and IDF Chief Zamir as part of a war crimes probe. Italy and France launched criminal investigations into his suspected torture and kidnapping of Global Sumud Flotilla activists, citing his own video of bound, kneeling detainees. France, Ireland, the UK, Spain, Slovenia, Canada, Australia, and Poland have imposed travel bans or entry restrictions. An EU sanctions push led by Ireland's Taoiseach Martin stalled when Czechia, Germany, and Austria blocked it at a June 15 Luxembourg meeting. Ben-Gvir dismissed Ireland's ban by saying he must have done something right.
Ben-Gvir opposed Netanyahu's June 27 announcement of a broad national government after October elections, insisting on a fully right-wing government instead. He declared Israel is not subject to the United States and rejected the Trump-Pezeshkian Iran MoU. He clashed publicly with President Herzog, calling him unfit after Herzog condemned extremist violence and detainee abuse. Netanyahu and FM Saar have repeatedly condemned his conduct, with Saar telling him he is not the face of Israel. Ben-Gvir is leveraging Netanyahu's political vulnerability — approval at 29.4 percent, 92 percent of Israelis believing Iran won the war — to pull the coalition rightward.
Key relationships
Coalition partners in acute tension: Ben-Gvir opposes Netanyahu's broad-government plan, Netanyahu blocked his Oslo repeal bill, and Netanyahu has repeatedly condemned his conduct as inconsistent with Israel's values.
Ben-Gvir and Smotrich are jointly pushing maximalist agendas — settlement expansion, West Bank annexation, opposition to the Iran deal — while both face ICC investigation and EU sanctions pressure.
Vance has publicly rebuked Ben-Gvir's rejection of the U.S.-Iran MoU and his escalatory rhetoric on Lebanon, calling his reaction a freakout and warning Israel cannot kill its way out of every problem.
Israel's foreign minister has directly repudiated Ben-Gvir's conduct, particularly over the flotilla detainee video.
Bennett vowed to dismiss any public servant who exploits their position politically after Ben-Gvir's noose-and-pistol birthday party; Ben-Gvir mocked Bennett in return.
Ben-Gvir attacked the Israeli president after Herzog condemned extremist violence and detainee abuse at the Jerusalem Unity Prize ceremony.
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