Islamic Jihad threatens to assassinate far-right leader Ben-Gvir

Palestinian Islamic Jihad has threatened to assassinate Jewish Power party leader and incoming National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

The group issued a statement saying Ben-Gvir’s “fate will be the same as that of Rehavam Ze’evi, the proponent of (population) transfers,” referring to the Israeli right-wing Tourism Minister who was assassinated in 2001 in a hotel in Jerusalem by Palestinians from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

Zeevi “carried the ideology of a transfer and expulsion of the Arabs from the land of Palestine and as a result he was expelled from life by Palestinians,” Islamic Jihad Spokesman Tarek Ezz El-Din said.

Ben-Gvir has also advocated for deporting “disloyal” Arab-Israelis, singling out the Knesset members Ahmad Tibi and Ayman Odeh, suggesting they should be sent to Syria.

Ben-Gvir responded to Islamic Jihad’s threats, saying that “the threats of the Islamic Jihad terrorist group will not deter me. We are committed to restoring security to Israel’s citizens. The time has come to form a fully right-wing government, so that we can crush the Islamic Jihad.”

Police and Shin Bet arrested eight Palestinians from East Jerusalem in April for planning to assassinate Ben-Gvir, as well as kidnap Israeli soldiers and launch attacks against Israelis.