"You are a clown": The stormy reception for Itamar Ben Gvir in the north | Documentation
The Minister of National Security toured Basmat Tab'un accompanied by heavy security - and absorbed curses and shouts from residents: "Everyone is laughing at you", "You are a terrorist". The documentation comes after several incidents that sparked sharp criticism in the Arab society against the minister and the police.
Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir arrived today, Tuesday, for a visit to a village in the north of the country and was met with insults and mockery from the local residents. Ben Gvir toured the streets of Basmat Tab'un, accompanied by heavy security, and absorbed a barrage of curses and harsh criticism from the residents regarding his performance.
"You are only making a mockery of yourself," residents shouted at him. "You are a clown. Everyone is laughing at you. You are a champion of failure. They didn't give you a visa to the United States." Residents heard in the video even called the minister a "terrorist": "A minister convicted of terrorism, you are a terrorist. Go to a mental hospital - you shouldn't be here. You incite terrorism."
The video published this morning comes against the backdrop of two other cases in which harsh criticism was heard in the Arab public against Ben Gvir and the police. At the beginning of the week, residents in Umm al-Fahm claimed that Israel Police forces broke into a wedding in the city and ordered the guests to lie on the floor. In the documentation published from the event, police forces are seen, with weapons drawn, passing between the guests lying on the floor.
In the police, they explained that "the activity documented in the video was carried out following a suspicion of the use of weaponry during a wedding." It was further stated: "Accordingly, the police forces and the fighters acted on the spot to check the suspicions and to locate the means of combat."
Dr. Yousef Jabareen, chairman of Hadash and a resident of Umm al-Fahm, attacked Ben Gvir following the incident: "I explicitly accuse Ben Gvir of using the powers he has to harm the Arab public and persecute it, because it serves him in his election campaign."
In another case that occurred over the weekend, a groom and bride, residents of the south, were detained for questioning after the police claimed their wedding convoy was disrupting traffic. The couple claimed that following the delay, they arrived late to the wedding and that some of the guests had already left the place. The groom and his father pointed an accusing finger at Ben Gvir and claimed that he "made a spin on them."
Ben Gvir, for his part, responded to the groom and bride incident:
"We are putting an end to the wild wedding convoys in the Negev and the shooting weddings that endanger human lives. They will continue to chatter and I will continue to work."
