Within the first 100 days of the formation of the new government, Minister of Public Security Itamar Ben Gvir will shortly present an alternative to the new national guard structure. Israel Hayom has learned that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu supports the suggestion presented by Brigadier General (Res.) Gal Hirsch to set up an "internal security military force," which will be headed by the chief of staff of the national guard and which will consist of five "reserve divisions," one of which will be transferred from the IDF to the police.
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The Ministry of National Security is considering the establishment of an immediate force based on tens of thousands of volunteers and IDF reservists, as formerly suggested by the Hashomer Hachadash organization, headed by Yoel Zilberman. The proposed idea is to turn the Border Guard, with the exception of the Judea and Samaria brigades, into an independent security body that will operate under the auspices of the minister, similar to the Israel Prison Service.
The coalition agreement signed between Otzma Yehudit and the Likud determines that the budget for the Ministry of National Security would be increased in the coming years by 45 billion Shekels in order to increase national and personal security and set up the joint national security and civil guard. It was also agreed that the Minister of Public Security will have some flexibility in earmarking budgets.
It was also agreed that within 90 days of convening the government, it would reach a decision on regulating the Israeli national guard. One of the conditions that raised heavy doubt was the disconnection between the Border Guard and the Israel Police and turning it into an independent service subject to the authority of the minister.
On June 14. 2022 former Prime Minister, Naftali Bennet, announced the establishment of the Israeli national guard, after learning lessons from the Shomer Chomot military operation in 2021.
In order to facilitate the establishment of the unit, Talya Lankry, former deputy head of the National Security Council and head of the Unit for Counter-Terrorism, was appointed to head the unit, but due to a lack of budget, the setup was put on hold – excluding the establishment of an entity that would start recruiting volunteers, which today stands at 300 only.
Israel Hayom has attention that in anticipation of bringing the new plan before the government, several alternatives are being considered.
The first is the civil model, I.e. continuing the plan to set up a group of volunteers within the Border Guard, similar to that of Hashomer Hachadash: reserve units that will operate in times of emergency and routine, as a supply force to the police, setting up 46 reserve units and increasing the Border Guard's regular inscription by an additional 1,000 regular soldiers.
An Independent Security Body
Another option being examined, which at this stage is met with opposition from the Chief of Staff, but is supported by the Minister, is to turn the Border Guard into an independent security body that will operate under the auspices of the minister's command, increase the regular number of soldiers by 1,000, and recruit about 900 reserve soldiers in four areas of the country as leading battalions, which will be put into action with an emergency call of up to six hours.
The significance of this is that for the first time in Israel's history, the Border Guard will take responsibility for realizing sovereignty in areas of high terrorism and hostile terrorist activities, to confiscate weapons, deal with illegal residents, eliminate cases of protection and deal with civil disorder in times of emergency, rural and agricultural crime and invasion of public lands.
This procedure will enable the Border Guard to be physically present in the relevant areas in order to serve as a deterring force and enable the police to deal with "normative citizens and use the services of the Border Guard as needed," a police source told Israel Hayom. "There is an immediate need to set up this security force. Due to the great number of calls to the 100 police emergency line during Shomer Hachomot, many calls were not answered.
Maximizing the Force
The most grandiose alternative is the plan suggested by Brigadier General (Res.) Gal Hirsch for the establishment of an Internal Security Army, to be comprised of five divisions, including one consisting of regular servicemen. This is a seven-year plan at a cost of approximately NIS 45 billion, which has received the Prime Minister's support.
Israel Hayom has learned that as part of this plan, an internal security situation will be defined, a basic law will be enacted: the army for internal security and crime organizations will be defined as "terrorist organizations." The plan also touches on the expansion of the Dromi Law, for citizens to protect their lives and property, and for the isolation of hard-core criminals in special jails. To be emphasized that last week the Minister of Public Security announced that he would demand the immediate realization of one of the coalition terms, which permits using the GSS in the fight against organized crime.
Lankry told Israel Hayom that since the events in 2000, and to a greater extent since Shomer Hachomot, it is clear to all that the heart of the state could turn into a war zone, which requires a response by policemen who are experts in fighting in civil zones and in holding dialogue with its citizens.
Israel doesn't have a response team like the French Gendarmerie or the US National Guard, which enables quick call and response to points of dispute and diffusing of the situation before it turns into a serious flare-up. "In Israel, the expert body that can be used for the national guard is the Border Guard," she added. "But its position under the authority of the police does not enable the full realization of its strength, and Border Guardmen are securing sports games instead of dealing with the real severe problems in society."
In order to develop and maximize the abilities of the Border Guard as a national security force, it must first be given the authority to deal with core issues and take these responsibilities from the Israel Police, so that it, in turn, can deal with services to citizens. Turning the Border Guard into a security body and separating it from the police, will take at least two years. During this time, the number of reserve combat soldiers must be significantly increased, so that they can give an immediate response in their location," summed up Lankry.
Ben Gvir's confidants say that he is testing several models and will present them to the public shortly.
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