According to Globes, the investigation of Itamar Ben Gvir’s actions in December 2021, when he was recorded confronting Arab security guards in a parking lot at the Exhibition Grounds in Tel Aviv, and drawing his gun, is expected to be shelved in the coming days (Ben-Gvir Pulls a Gun on Arab Security Guards Who Threatened Him).
The Otzma Yehudit Chairman was documented with a drawn gun aimed at Arab security guards in an underground parking lot in the Tel Aviv exhibition grounds when he arrived to join a celebration with Rabbi Meir Mazuz. MK Ben Gvir said he pulled out his gun because he felt threatened by the guards. He also said police officers he called to the scene detained some of the guards for questioning, but the police stated that no one was detained and that the Arab guards claimed it was Ben-Gvir who threatened them.
הגעתי לחניון בגני התערוכה ושני מאבטחים ערבים ניסו לתקוף אותי. שלומי טוב, המשטרה בדרכה למקום. pic.twitter.com/b03vV0VJeW
— איתמר בן גביר (@itamarbengvir) December 21, 2021
Ben-Gvir issued a statement saying: “The incident could have ended in murder. When we parked the car the two started cursing. I replied that they should shut up and then they came toward me threateningly while saying, ‘We will kill you,’ ‘We will [expletive] you,’ ‘We will beat you up.’ At this point, I felt threatened and pulled out the weapon, I pointed it down, and this calmed them for a while. I saw in front of me two Arabs who were supposed to be security guards, with hatred in their eyes, who cursed and threatened to hit me and murder me. I expect the police to investigate the two and file an indictment. They belong in prison. It will be safer for the public.”
The case remained with the police for the longest time, and at the beginning of the election campaign was transferred to the prosecutor’s office for review. Two weeks ago, the Tel Aviv District Attorney’s Office recommended to the State Attorney and the AG to shelve the investigation against Ben Gvir, but an official decision on the matter has not yet been made.
Nine months after he had been investigated with a warning, and hours after the elections, the criminal case against the MK who is designated for the post of Minister of Internal Security, will now be shelved.
Ben Gvir said in response: “I wonder why the investigation against the ‘security guards’ was closed when it turned out that one of them was a terrorist on the loose who had thrown a Molotov cocktail. At the same time, it was already clear during the investigation that the case would be closed and I have no doubt that if the police investigators had known that this was a terrorist on the loose, no one would have thought to talk to me about this matter.”
