Maariv has pulished the ten most influential people of the past year, with President-elect Donald Trump in first place and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in second.
Following them were Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara in third, and Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir in fourth.
The paper explained its choice of Ben-Gvir: "Love him or hate him, but one thing is clear: Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir cannot be ignored. Almost all of his actions are controversial - especially in the police, where his opponents claim that he has completed the takeover of the police and its politicization with the appointment of Commissioner Dani Levi. They further allege that he is the almost sole responsible party for the trend of senior officers leaving the Israel Police."
"But with all due respect to the police, Ben-Gvir's most notable achievements were registered in the prisons. He appointed his security adviser Kobi Ya'acobi as the Prisons Service Commissioner and fulfilled his election promise, when he changed the conditions of the terrorists in the Israeli prison from 'a kindergarten' to what his associates call 'the Israeli version of Guantanamo'. The canteens and bakeries were closed, the televisions were removed, and the menus were curtailed."
"He has also made headlines with a 400% increase in the demolition of illegal construction in Bedouin communities, including the erasure of the village of Umm al-Hiran, are a direct result of his policy, which included personal monitoring of the demolition operations."
"Ben-Gvir, it seems, is pushing the government rightward on almost every issue. He is at the head of the long and unprecedented campaign against Attorney General Gali Behar Meara, who supports his dismissal, and calls on the prime minister to dismiss her. Otzma Yehudit also promoted a bill to reduce the Attorney General's influence, and Ben-Gvir even claimed that she tried to frame him with a criminal case for the facilitation of licenses for firearms."
"These relaxations are considered a major action in Ben-Gvir's tenure, despite professional criticism from a long line of former police chiefs, who have carried out a series of relaxations in the criteria for obtaining civilian weapons. The result: some 200,000 private licenses and the establishment of more than 1,000 neighborhood defense units with tens of thousands of long guns."
"Ben Gvir was one of the most vocal members of the government against a second hostage deal with Hamas. He waged an intra-governmental battle against what he termed a "reckless" agreement, and threatened that signing such a deal would bring about his immediate resignation from the government. Unlike his detractors, who claim that the government is abandoning the hostages in the tunnels of Gaza, he actually sees this as a great achievement. Concurrently, he expressed unqualified support for an uncompromising policy in Gaza and for a ground invasion of southern Lebanon."
"After the deparure of Benny Gantz and Gadi Eizenkot from the government, Ben-Gvir insisted on being allowed into the limited cabinet. The intransigence (which had precipitated a coalition crisis) paid off, and what had been deemed by all commentators as a non-starter, became reality: Prime Minister Netanyahu, who only two years ago had refused to be seen with Ben-Gvir on the same platform, had brought him into the limited cabinet and had seated him at the most secretive security meetings."
"In 2025, Ben-Gvir will continue to provide reasons for concern to the public, the media and the Prime Minister - which his supporters will see as an achievement."