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Jewish extremists harm Israel, official warns. Are Israelis listening?

Ronen Bar, the head of Israel鈥檚 internal security agency, Shin Bet, issued a stark warning to members of Benjamin Netanyahu鈥檚 government in late August.

Jewish terror, perpetrated on Palestinians by violent settlers in the West Bank, and provocative visits by Israel鈥檚 National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to Jerusalem鈥檚 Temple Mount, are doing 鈥渋ndescribable damage鈥� to the nation, Mr. Bar said in a published by Channel 12 News on Aug. 22.

Violent Jewish settlers, he wrote, are getting soft treatment and a 鈥渟ecret sense of backing鈥� from the Israeli police, which is overseen by Mr. Ben-Gvir. All this will lead to added bloodshed and 鈥渦nrecognizably鈥� change the face of the nation, the letter warned.

Mr. Bar reportedly sent his letter to government ministers and Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara,聽though not to the hard-line Mr. Ben-Gvir. In it he warns聽that the unchecked rise of the extreme right聽is leading to the delegitimization of Israel, even among its allies; is spreading thin the deployment of the Israeli military; and is creating a 鈥渟lippery slope to the feeling of a lack of governance鈥� in Israel.

Yet the extraordinary warnings have received relatively scant attention, as Israeli citizens continue to grapple with an overwhelming stream of heartbreaking news related to Hamas鈥� Oct. 7 attack and the war in Gaza.

Just days prior to publication of Mr. Bar鈥檚 letter, Israelis were informed that the Israel Defense Forces had retrieved the bodies of six hostages who had been killed in captivity. Then on Sept. 1, the of another six hostages were recovered shortly after being executed by Hamas. That same day, three Israeli police officers were in the West Bank. And all this amid the war in Gaza and Hezbollah rockets from Lebanon raining down on Israel鈥檚 north.

鈥淓xtremists thrive in chaos鈥�

鈥淧eople have seen so many negative things coming at them that they are only able to digest so much,鈥� says Tal Schneider, a political and diplomatic correspondent for The Times of Israel.

This is making them 鈥渜uite sealed off from reality,鈥� she explains, adding that since Oct. 7, Israelis have also developed 鈥渁 deep distrust鈥� of the government, the army, the Shin Bet, the press, and the courts.

鈥淚sraeli society is breaking down,鈥� she says, with 鈥渕any consequences.鈥� One is tuning out growing Jewish extremism.

鈥淭he public does not understand the severe implications of the rampage of the settlers and the state鈥檚 inability to enforce the law. Ronen Bar鈥檚 warnings are not taken by the people as seriously as they should because they don鈥檛 trust him,鈥� she says.

The chaos that has gripped Israeli society for nearly two years, first over the government鈥檚 proposed judicial overhaul that triggered massive protests, and then because of the war, has brought extremists out into the open.

鈥淓xtremists thrive in chaos,鈥� says Erez Kreiner, an associate at the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism at Reichman University and a former senior security official.

In April, far-right Jewish settlers killed four Palestinians and wounded dozens in the West Bank in response to the killing of a 14-year-old Jewish shepherd. On Aug. 15, some 100 masked settlers attacked the West Bank village of Jit, setting cars and buildings on fire and killing a Palestinian. After an , the Israeli military admitted that its initial response to the 鈥渞ioters鈥� was inadequate.

鈥淲e repress the real picture鈥�

Ami Ayalon, a former head of the Shin Bet, and a former parliamentarian for Israel鈥檚 Labor Party, took over the internal security agency following the killing in 1995 of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who was assassinated by a Jewish extremist opposed to the Oslo peace accords with the Palestinians.

鈥淏efore Rabin鈥檚 murder, the shouts on the streets were much louder than today,鈥� Mr. Ayalon says of the Jewish extremists. 鈥淏ut at that time, they were not in power.鈥�

Today, he adds, 鈥淭hey are in power. The Jewish terror is financed largely by state funds; they have a political arm, headed by Ben-Gvir, who sits in the government and arguably dictates the policy of the government.鈥�

鈥淛ewish terror is not generating a reaction within Israel,鈥� he says. And Israel鈥檚 response to this growing threat is 鈥渓imp, weak, and nonexistent.鈥�

鈥淪ome of us say Jewish terrorists are weeds, a small minority, and they do not represent us. When we look at ourselves in the mirror, we don鈥檛 see ourselves as people who shoot innocent Palestinians,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut we are in denial. We repress the real picture because it is a very ugly one, unbearable to see.鈥�

In from the fringe

Until Israel鈥檚 latest election, Mr. Ben-Gvir and his party were viewed as fringe players in national politics. But then Mr. Netanyahu, on trial for multiple allegations of corruption and eager to find coalition partners, added him to his government and gave him the national security portfolio.

Mr. Ben-Gvir, a media-savvy lawyer-turned-politician who has in the past defended settlers charged with violence against Palestinians, has himself been convicted of offenses that include racism and support for a terrorist organization.

But Mr. Netanyahu and his right-wing government have so far refrained from restraining Mr. Ben-Gvir, who remains highly popular on the Israeli right.

The grassroots Movement for Quality Government in Israel, which aims to preserve Israel鈥檚 democracy, has been watching Mr. Ben-Gvir closely since he became minister, says Rotem Bavli Dvir, the movement鈥檚 head of litigation.

On Aug. 28, she says, her organization appealed to the state prosecutor, the head of the police, and the attorney general to open a criminal investigation against Mr. Ben-Gvir on suspicion of incitement and sedition. The move followed his most recent visit to the Temple Mount, which is also holy to Muslims as Haram Sharif and is the site of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The movement has also petitioned Israel鈥檚 Supreme Court on two other matters: Mr. Ben-Gvir鈥檚 to the police law, approved by the Knesset, that allows him to direct the policy of the police, restraining its independence; and his office鈥檚 distribution of without the proper authorizations since Oct. 7.聽

Mr. Ben-Gvir has also clashed with Attorney General Baharav-Miara, recently on the promotion of Meir Suissa, who was indicted for throwing a stun grenade at anti-government protesters last year. The Jerusalem District Court late last week froze Mr. Suissa鈥檚 promotion, saying it violated police procedures.

The courts are called upon to rule on many of these matters, says Ms. Bavli Dvir, because in recent years the legislative checks and balances that should be in place on the government are ineffective.

An emotional need for control

Meanwhile, Mr. Ben-Gvir鈥檚 detractors say he continues to behave like a bull in a china shop without paying a price.

Professor Uriel Abulof, a political scientist at Tel Aviv University, says that someday, to get the nation back on track, Israel鈥檚 civil society will have to come together and 鈥渢hink bravely鈥� about the way forward.

But in the meantime, he explains, what Mr. Ben-Gvir is tapping into is emotional.

It 鈥渋s something that goes to the heart of the human condition ... control,鈥� says Professor Abulof. 鈥淚sraelis have been feeling for years now that they don鈥檛 have a say; they don鈥檛 have control over whatever is happening to them, personally, to their families, to the world around them. Everything seems to be shaken, uncertain, sometimes falling apart.鈥�

What Mr. Ben-Gvir is effectively promising, he says, through the handing out of firearms, for example, is a 鈥渟hortcut to a sense of security and control.鈥�

To keep his coalition together, Mr. Netanyahu 鈥渉as to please Ben-Gvir in all the various ways that Ben-Gvir increasingly demands, and he does,鈥� says Professor Abulof. 鈥淎s long as Netanyahu can keep his coalition, he will do whatever it takes.鈥�