Itamar Ben-Gvir Cancels New York UN Police Chiefs Summit Trip Over Fear of Arrest

Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir canceled a planned trip to New York for the United Nations Police Chiefs Summit after Israeli media and Haaretz reported fears of arrest tied to planned protests and legal pressure from human rights groups.

“Israel's Haaretz newspaper revealed that National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir canceled a trip planned to New York to participate in the United Nations Police Chiefs Summit, amid fears of protests against him by human rights groups, along with growing calls for his arrest and investigation”

Al-Jazeera Net

Haaretz reported that Ben-Gvir decided to cancel his New York visit after appeals by human rights organizations to U.S. authorities and organized protests in the city.

Al-Jazeera Net

The Hind Rajab Foundation said it welcomed the cancellation, framing it as a result of its legal pursuit and the Center for Constitutional Rights, and it described the move as “a significant and concrete victory.”

The Times of Israel reported that a spokesperson for the Otzma Yehudit leader said Ben-Gvir was not planning on traveling to New York, and a UN official told JTA that he was not registered for the police summit.

The Hind Rajab Foundation said it filed a complaint with the United States Department of Justice and, together with the Center for Constitutional Rights, submitted a letter urging New York Attorney General Letitia James to launch an investigation into Ben-Gvir’s violations of New York State law and his crimes against New York residents.

The Jerusalem Post reported that HRF said it had appealed to Letitia James to open an investigation and that the group called the reported cancellation proof that “accountability is no longer theoretical.”

Haaretz

In parallel, The Times of Israel described anti-Zionist activists planning to protest against a purported visit, while a Ben-Gvir spokesperson said the trip was not happening and the Consulate General of Israel in New York concurred.

The Times of Israel also quoted Rabbi Jill Jacobs of T’ruah saying, “It’s really important for people, both American Jews and Israelis, to say that extremists like Ben Gvir aren’t accepted in our community,” as liberal Jewish groups prepared demonstrations outside the UN.

HRF said the duty to investigate remains in force whether or not the subject of the complaint enters New York, adding that Attorney General James “continues to have a duty to meet with New York residents who are victims” and to thoroughly investigate the allegations presented.

The Hind Rajab Foundation also called for James to establish a dedicated “Atrocity Crimes Accountability Task Force” within the Office of the Attorney General to investigate atrocity crimes perpetrated by or against New York residents in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

The Jerusalem Post reported that Ben-Gvir defended the Israel Prison Service by saying prison policy was being carried out legally, while it noted that Ben-Gvir’s office refused to confirm HRF’s allegations.

In the background of the legal pressure, the sources also tied Ben-Gvir’s international travel scrutiny to earlier bans from entering France and Ireland after a video showing abuses against detained activists from the “Solidarity Fleet,” and to judicial authorities in Italy and France announcing investigations for allegedly torturing activists.