who are Binyamin Netanyahu’s far-right allies, possible kingmakers of the next government?

If he returns to power, it will be partly thanks to them. Former Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said to himself “close to a great victory”, Wednesday, November 2, after the announcement of the first results of the legislative elections, marked by the breakthrough of a far-right party. Likud leader saw his allies from the list Religious Zionism (or Religious Zionist Party) come third, with 14 seats, doubling their previous number of elected members, after the counting of 87% of the ballots. Led by Bezalel Smotrich, the Religious Zionist Party is also embodied by Itamar Ben Gvir, leader of the anti-Arab Jewish Force party, which campaigned under this common banner. “Israel is about to embark on a right-wing, religious and authoritarian revolution”fears the great left-wing daily Ha’aretz.

Franceinfo introduces you to the two men who may hold the keys to the next Israeli government.

Itamar Ben Gvir, the agitator

Long confined to the role of infrequent troublemaker of the far right, Itamar Ben Gvir has become a key figure in politics in Israel. His ideological line is inspired by one of the most radical rabbis in history, Meïr Kahane, founder of a Jewish supremacist formation banned from the country for “terrorism” after an attack in 1994. Itamar Ben Gvir is himself known, since his adolescence, for having been charged dozens of times for incitement to hatred or for violence and boasts of having been cleared in 46 out of 53 cases.

In 1995, in a tense climate after the Oslo agreements concluded between Israel and the Palestinians, he stood out by tearing the Cadillac symbol from the car of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. “We have arrived at this symbol. We will arrive at it”, had then launched the young man. A few weeks later, the Israeli leader was assassinated by another far-right activist.

After years of activism, Itamar Ben Gvir, a trained lawyer, became an MP in April 2021. Anxious to make himself more respectable, the leader of the Jewish Force (Otzma Yehudit) party assured, a few months later, that he had “exchange” since he started.

“I said twenty years ago that all Arabs should be expelled, I don’t think so anymore, but I’m not going to apologize.”

Itamar Ben Gvir, leader of Jewish Force

at AFP

Itamar Ben Gvir nevertheless advocates the expulsion to neighboring countries of part of the Arabs of Israel, targeting “those who act to undermine existence” of the Jewish state. He claims not to have “no problem” with the Arab population “loyal” to the State of Israel. Installed in one of the most radical settlements in the occupied West Bank, he also defends the annexation of this territory, where 2.9 million Palestinians and 475,000 Israeli settlers live. At 46, this father of six children is also known for his LGBTphobic positions.

What could be his role in the future government? Itamar Ben Gvir said on Tuesday that he was running for the key ministry of internal security, which Benyamin Netanyahu did not rule out. “It’s a paradox when you know that he did not do his military service, the army considering him too radical”emphasizes Frédérique Schillo, a historian specializing in Israel, in The cross. This rising figure has never hidden his fondness for weapons – he had recently brandished a pistol during clashes in East Jerusalem. Such an appointment could give rise to a security tightening, Itamar Ben Gvir deploring that Israel has so far made too limited use of force against the Palestinians.

Bezalel Smotrich, the radical leader

More discreet and pacifist than his running mate, Bezalel Smotrich is the president of the Religious Zionist Party (HaTzionut HaDatit), new name, since 2021, of the Resurrection Party (Tkuma). This son of a rabbi attended one of the most prestigious Talmudic schools in Jerusalem. In a state with 20% Arab inhabitants, he defends a radical vision of Israel. The assertive settler sees the country as Jewish land for Jews, which should be governed more by the Torah, and opposes the two-state solution that Binyamin Netanyahu has supported in the past.

Also a lawyer, Bezalel Smotrich rubbed shoulders with militant and political life during demonstrations for “defend the Jewish presence” in the Palestinian territories, as noted Release in 2017. One of his mobilizations earned him an arrest in 2005, on the sidelines of incidents against the dismantling of Gaza settlements, a project carried out at the time by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

Elected MK in 2015, Bezalel Smotrich stood out in the Knesset as one of the poorest and most studious elected members of parliament, only seeing his children on Shabbat, according to a recent article by Release. At the same time, this father of seven children said to himself “proud to be homophobic” and does not hide his racism. He was particularly indignant that his wife had to meet Arab women in the hospital after giving birth. Between 2019 and 2020, he was promoted to the post of Minister of Transport in the government of Binyamin Netanyahu.

One of his hobbyhorses is now the reform of the Israeli judicial system, which he wants to submit more to his politico-religious aspirations, in particular by the government appointment of judges of the Supreme Court and by the restriction of the possibility of censorship laws passed in the Knesset. Some prosecutions against parliamentarians would be made impossible, which could put an end to the trial against Benyamin Netanyahu, notes The world.

The guarantee of such a reform was presented as a necessary prerequisite for any alliance with the party of Benyamin Netanyahu after the legislative elections, reports The Times of Israel. The Religious Zionist Party has said it will claim the Ministry of Justice in the event of a coalition agreement. Its leader, Bezalel Smotrich, would aim for the Defense post, according to The world.