During the Otzma Yehudit faction meeting held today (Monday), the Minister of National Security, MK Itamar Ben Gvir, was asked by Arutz Sheva how he is preparing for the hearing scheduled for Thursday regarding the petitions to remove him from his position.
In response, Ben Gvir said, "Such a decision by the Supreme Court is an unlawful decision. Our Prime Minister and government ministers have already made it clear - they will see such a decision as a coup in every sense, with all that it entails."
In an expanded statement made during the meeting, Ben Gvir said, "We are facing a period of critical challenge and an existential threat to the existence of the State of Israel as a democracy. This is not a political struggle - it is a struggle for the fundamental principle of democracy: whether the people are the sovereign, whether their elected representatives are the lawmakers, whether they are the government, or whether the elected officials are subjects of a group of bureaucrats who decide for them what to legislate and whom to appoint."
According to him, "We are witnessing clear attempts of a coup through law enforcement agencies. This is simply a coup against democracy. A coup being carried out in direct contradiction to the law. A group of bureaucrats trying to drain the authority of the Knesset, the government, and the ministers. This group is, among other things, using fabricated criminal investigations, persecution, and terrorizing public officials to make them serve the bureaucrats, instead of the people."
The minister directly attacked the attorney general and said, "The criminal attorney general, who leads a political persecution against many coalition members, including a targeted persecution against the Prime Minister's staff and against me. This is the same attorney general who, when it comes to other politicians who called for rebellion or leaked secret protocols, does not pursue them to the full extent of the law, because she, in the legal system, instead of acting according to the law, chooses to promote political agendas through investigation rooms."
Ben Gvir continued his criticism of Supreme Court rulings: "We are also seeing rulings that are given in violation of the law, invalidating laws passed by the Knesset with a wave of the hand, including Basic Laws, including invalidating government decisions made lawfully and with full authority, including creating panels as requested. And all this creates a situation where our constitutional and democratic system is facing an unprecedented challenge. This is a real threat to democracy itself - a threat that can be said to now loom over the head of Israeli democracy."
However, he ended on an optimistic note: "I am optimistic. It is precisely from these challenges that new opportunities for systemic correction emerge. It is very likely that from the current crisis, a great reform will come out, a fundamental change that will restore balance to the entire system. Sometimes a sick person must undergo surgery in order to recover. We stand firm, right, and confident in our path. And without a shadow of a doubt, the law stands by those who make sure to act according to it. And we will adhere to the law. Only the law, and everything according to the law."
"I ask all of us to remember," he concluded, "the challenge is great, but it is not impossible. Our power is in the clarity of principles, in our determination, and in our commitment to the law and democracy. Together, we will continue to lead, correct, and restore the system to its essence - a legal, just system, open to all citizens of the state."