Who Is Itamar Ben-Gvir? Israel’s Far-Right Firebrand Rising With the Global Populist Right

Polling ahead of Israel’s Oct. 27 election suggests that National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit Party could capture between seven and 10 of the Knesset’s 120 seats. Such a result could make a future government headed by Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party dependent on Ben-Gvir’s backing and give him leverage to seek senior ministerial posts.

Ben-Gvir’s ascent reflects a wider movement across Europe and the West, where politicians including Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella of France’s National Rally, Dutch Party for Freedom leader Geert Wilders, Australia’s One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, Italy’s Matteo Salvini and Alice Weidel of Germany’s AfD have gained support at the expense of traditional conservative parties.

As national security minister, the controversial Ben-Gvir oversees Israel’s internal security apparatus, including the Israel Police, Israel Prison Service and civilian firearms licensing.

“I always say that Minister Ben-Gvir, if he were in America, he would just be called a Texan,” Yishai Fleisher, international spokesman for the Jewish community of Hebron and the No. 12 candidate on the Otzma Yehudit list, told News Media.

In a video interview with News Media, Fleisher elaborated: “Meaning law and order, the death penalty for murderers, tough conditions for jihadists in our prisons and gun rights for the average Jewish person to be able to defend themselves in our national state. That’s what Itamar Ben-Gvir stands for,” he said.

Fleisher argued that mass immigration had contributed to Islamist extremism and unrest in parts of Europe, developments he said Israelis wanted to prevent in their own country.

“There is a jihadist takeover that has come in through immigration, and now the streets of Paris are burning, and the people of Belgium and the U.K. want their countries back,” Fleisher said. “In Israel, we don’t want to see Tel Aviv burning,” he added, saying such concerns had helped propel politicians identified in the United States as “law-and-order” and “tough-on-crime” candidates.

Former Israeli Ambassador to Washington Danny Ayalon said Ben-Gvir had failed to use his position to change direction. Ayalon pointed to Ben-Gvir’s lack of military service and past conviction, arguing that his tenure had instead harmed Israel, including its diplomatic standing.

“Ben-Gvir spoke in a way that turned the entire world against Israel, portraying it as a racist country by making statements that made Israel a pariah state,” Ayalon said.

“I always say that Minister Ben-Gvir, if he were in America, he would just be called a Texan…Meaning law and order, the death penalty for murderers.

Fleisher credited Ben-Gvir with cracking down on protection rackets in southern Israel and making what he described as significant progress toward greater equality for Jews on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, Judaism’s holiest site.

“Minister Ben-Gvir was an activist from a very young age. He saw the dangers and evils of the Oslo process with the Palestinians and tried to stop it. He was arrested and stopped many times because of that, and he faced the court many times. It was then-Chief Justice Aharon Barak who once told him, ‘Why don’t you go study to be a lawyer?’” Fleisher said.

“Ben-Gvir spoke in a way that turned the entire world against Israel, portraying it as a racist country by making statements that made Israel a pariah state.”

Ben-Gvir studied law before entering public and political life and was first elected to the Knesset in 2021. After the 2022 elections, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appointed him minister of national security.

His critics have objected to his firebrand approach and what many regard as a disregard for political correctness. Ayalon, a former deputy foreign minister and ambassador, told News Media that he also considered Ben-Gvir’s record as national security minister to be negative.

“During his tenure, Israel has become less secure internally because crime is rising. Many young people believed in the last election that he would bring governability and authority to areas such as the Negev and the Galilee, on the outskirts of the country, where there is almost no law,” Ayalon said.

In 2007, Ben-Gvir was convicted of supporting a terrorist organization and inciting racism.

His campaign told News Media that the conviction stemmed from displaying a sticker of the late Rabbi Meir Kahane, whose Kach party was outlawed in 1994, and reflected his support for a Jewish nationalist movement.

“As a young man, Minister Ben-Gvir was an intense Jewish nationalist. He has said many times, publicly, that he has matured since then and moved on from those positions.”

Recent posts on Ben-Gvir’s social media accounts, along with statements issued through Netanyahu’s and Likud’s official channels, have raised questions about whether the two remain fully aligned.

On Oct. 15, Ben-Gvir shared a Hebrew-language media report quoting Netanyahu as saying that he would not serve again as national security minister. In response, Ben-Gvir wrote: “Dear Prime Minister, only the people will decide. Ben Gvir is strong, Israel is strong!”

Last Wednesday, Netanyahu’s Likud party appeared to reverse course, posting a message on its official WhatsApp channel stating: “Ben-Gvir is a senior minister in our government, and he will remain so in the next government — provided that the bloc consisting of the Left and Arab parties does not win.”

Despite the public statements, Ayalon said Netanyahu could opt not to include Ben-Gvir in the next government, even if it meant forming an alliance with opposition parties such as Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar.

“Netanyahu is brilliant. He kept Ben-Gvir because it suited him. If he could, he would get rid of him in a minute. Bibi is capable of changing his mind on a dime,” Ayalon said.

Fleisher credited Ben-Gvir with tripling the number of personal firearms and firearms licenses issued to Israelis over four years, establishing 1,000 rapid-response teams, overhauling the prison system and demolishing 9,000 illegally built homes, particularly in the Negev.

In March, the Knesset approved a death-penalty law sponsored by Otzma Yehudit and other lawmakers, a measure Ben-Gvir has strongly championed.

“No more hotel-like conditions in our prisons. You’ll know you are being punished for your crime, and these simple policies ultimately deter jihadism,” Fleisher told News Media.

“They understand that he represents a full-throated pushback against the jihadist takeover of our land. Ben-Gvir also represents a strong Jewish identity, strong policies and strong laws to ensure that we don’t lose control of our country,” he said.

The latest polls show Netanyahu’s bloc slightly behind the opposition, led by Yashar party chief Gadi Eisenkot, but neither side has a clear path to the 61 seats needed for a governing majority.