National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir sharply criticized members of the media following reports about the tracking and exposure of Yair Netanyahu's location during the war, and the assassination plot that was foiled at the last minute.
"This morning, I identify with Yair Netanyahu," Ben Gvir wrote in a post on his X account. "The persecution by some obsessive journalists, who prefer another headline over the safety and lives of people under threat, knows no bounds."
"The report about a 'journalist' who exposed places where the Prime Minister's son stayed and spent time during the war, in my view, crosses every acceptable journalistic standard - and should be condemned by both the right and the left."
Ben Gvir added, "I know this phenomenon firsthand. During the war, when my family and I were evacuated by the Shin Bet to a hotel due to fears of an assassination attempt, journalists approached my spokesman with similar questions: Why is Minister Ben Gvir at a hotel during a war?"
"This happened while I was one of the most threatened public figures in Israel, following around 10 assassination attempts from within Israel and abroad, among other things due to the tough policies I lead in prisons, the demolition of illegal structures, and the firm stance I take against the enemy, including in Cabinet meetings.
"My spokesman tried to explain to them again and again: This isn't a vacation or leisure. It's a decision by security officials due to a genuine fear of assassination. But apparently that explanation is less interesting when the goal is the headline."
Concluding his statements, Ben Gvir called for clear boundaries to be placed on journalistic work: "Criticism - yes. Endangering human lives in the name of persecution and obsession - absolutely not."