Tel Aviv police chief resigns, cites government meddling against protesters

JERUSALEM – Tel Aviv’s police commander said on Wednesday he was quitting the force, citing political intervention by members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hard-right Cabinet whom he said wanted excessive force used against anti-government protesters.

Tel Aviv district commander Ami Eshed did not name far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who had demanded tough action against protesters blocking roads and highways in unprecedented demonstrations against

the government’s contentious push to overhaul the justice system.

Soon after Mr Eshed’s announcement, hundreds of protesters carrying Israeli flags and chanting “democracy” marched through Tel Aviv. Some blocked a main highway, lit fires and faced off with police on horseback.

In a televised statement, Mr Eshed said he could not live up to the expectations of what he called “the ministerial echelon”, which he said had broken all rules and had blatantly interfered in professional decision-making.

“I could have easily met these expectations by using unreasonable force that would have filled up the emergency room of Ichilov (Tel Aviv hospital) at the end of every protest,” Mr Eshed said.

“For the first time in three decades of service, I encountered an absurd reality in which ensuring calm and order was not what was required of me but precisely the opposite,” he said.

Mr Ben-Gvir, who in March had informed Mr Eshed that he would be assigned to a new role on the force – a move seen as blocking his hopes to be made police chief – said on Twitter that the district commander’s remarks proved that he was a political commander.

“Politics has seeped into the most senior ranks in Israel and a uniformed officer has caved in to senior politicians on the left,” he said.

Mr Ben-Gvir, a hardliner with past convictions for supporting terrorism and incitement, had sought greater authority over the police force when he was tapped to serve as its overseeing minister, prompting concerns about police independence.

Having recanted some of his views, Mr Ben-Gvir joined Mr Netanyahu’s new coalition in December, alarming liberals at home and abroad.

The leader of the Jewish Power party has since on occasion rebuked the police for their treatment of protesters.

Other ministers have also accused the police of showing favourable treatment to the protesters – who have filled Tel Aviv’s streets weekly since January – compared with what they see as far harsher treatment of settlers and ultra-Orthodox protesters. REUTERS