The commander of the IDF Tactical Command College and the Hermon Brigade, Col. Avinoam Emuna, recently met with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir in violation of military protocol and without authorization from his superiors.
According to a report by Kan News, the meeting concerned the colonel's possible appointment as the commander of the National Guard, which Minister Ben-Gvir intends to establish. Following the meeting, Emuna was reprimanded by his superiors.
Emuna, 43, lives in Rehovot, is married to Ortal, and is a father of seven. In the IDF, he has served as the commander of the Hermon Brigade, the Tactical Command College, the Golan Division, and the Maglan Unit. The decorated officer was awarded the Command General's Medal for his performance as the commander of the 101st Battalion of the Paratrooper Brigade during Operation Protective Edge.
The IDF Spokesperson stated concerning the incident: "The commander of the IDF Colleges, Maj. Gen. Itai Virov recently conducted an investigation regarding Col. Avinoam Emuna, the commander of the IDF Tactical Command College and the Hermon Brigade. The investigation was conducted after it was found out that the officer met with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. The investigation found that the officer met with the minister without coordination or authorization as required while violating the prohibition for IDF service members to meet with senior members of the government. Therefore, the officer was reprimanded by the commander of the IDF Colleges. The officer accepted his responsibility for the incident and recognized the severity of his action. The investigation was presented to the Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi."
The National Guard will include five active Border Police brigades, consisting of 2,500 troops and about 46 reserve companies, and its men will receive the authority of police officers. In the first stage, the new force will be allowed 1,800 positions, costing 1.4 million NIS a year. The government authorized a million NIS general budget cut across all government ministries to fund the move.