A former commander in Israel’s elite Golani Brigade has told The National it is essential that his country forms a national guard, a divisive project led by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
Mr Ben-Gvir has stirred controversy on a number of issues, taking a hard line in favour of settlement expansion in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Professor Gabi Siboni says that Israel is “late in creating” such a force, and that it would be crucial during “conflicts with Israel’s enemies, in which the country could face extreme internal conditions”.
Despite fears among some in Israel’s security establishment that a national guard could become a “militia”, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in March promised Mr Ben-Gvir that plans for the force would be brought before cabinet for approval.
The plans were given the go-ahead in early April despite warnings from Israeli police chief Kobi Shabtai that a national guard subordinate to Mr Ben-Gvir “could cause serious harm to the safety and security of Israeli citizens”.
But Prof Siboni believes history shows that such a force would make Israel safer.
“We had Arab riots in Israel during (military operation) Guardians of the Walls. We need these new forces to maintain order and ensure the safety of the Jewish people and also Arabs, who suffer from riots,” Prof Siboni said.
Guardian of the Walls was a 2021 Israeli military operation launched after terror group Hamas launched missiles into Israel from its enclave, the Gaza Strip.
“In an actual full-scale conflict, the situation seen in 2021 could be magnified 100 times. The police force in its current form would be unable to provide any such security. It is too small and already has many other missions to fulfil,” Prof Siboni said.
“We need a strong organisation based on reserves that would provide security in mixed cities, to allow our military to concentrate its forces on the borders,” he added.
Some policing experts disagree.
Merav Lapidot, a former chief spokeswoman for Israel’s police, told The National that a national guard would divert vital funds away from an overstretched police force.
“The police currently lacks 2,000 officers and needs more money, not a new national guard with expensive new headquarters,” Ms Lapidot said.
Private militia fear
“Creating a national guard without taking care of the police would severely damage capabilities to enforce the law and prevent terror attacks,” Ms Lapidot said.
Ms Lapidot also fears that the force could be politicised. “We can assume Mr Ben-Gvir wants a private militia so he can address whatever he wants, whenever he wants,” she said.
“I’m not sure any western country has a private army for one minister. Syria and Iran, for example, have a private army only answerable to the government,” she added.
Ms Lapidot is also concerned by a national guard’s effect on Israel’s Arab population.
“People’s trust is crucial for any government entity and even more so for the police. A national guard along the lines currently being explored risks normalising selective enforcement. If that were to happen at the expense of Arabs, then trust is going to be further weakened,” Ms Lapidot said.
“We have delicate, if you can call it that, relations with the Arab population and the police force. If they think they’re going to be the target of this national guard then it is going to be even worse.”
But Prof Siboni said opponents of the move are incorrectly “contaminating their views with politics”.
“The fears are absolutely ridiculous. Those against the idea are not seeing the magnitude of the problem we face,” Prof Siboni added.
He says that “many liberal democratic states have a variety of security forces, such as Italy and Spain”.
“This would not alienate Arabs,” Prof Siboni said.
“It would do the opposite. The first to suffer in such situation are the Arabs not involved in tensions. Peaceful populations are always terrified by the riots of a very active minority," he said.
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UAE Rugby finals day
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2pm, UAE Conference final
Dubai Tigers v Al Ain Amblers
4pm, UAE Premiership final
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Five hymns the crowds can join in
Papal Mass will begin at 10.30am at the Zayed Sports City Stadium on Tuesday
Some 17 hymns will be sung by a 120-strong UAE choir
Five hymns will be rehearsed with crowds on Tuesday morning before the Pope arrives at stadium
‘Christ be our Light’ as the entrance song
‘All that I am’ for the offertory or during the symbolic offering of gifts at the altar
‘Make me a Channel of your Peace’ and ‘Soul of my Saviour’ for the communion
‘Tell out my Soul’ as the final hymn after the blessings from the Pope
The choir will also sing the hymn ‘Legions of Heaven’ in Arabic as ‘Assakiroo Sama’
There are 15 Arabic speakers from Syria, Lebanon and Jordan in the choir that comprises residents from the Philippines, India, France, Italy, America, Netherlands, Armenia and Indonesia
The choir will be accompanied by a brass ensemble and an organ
They will practice for the first time at the stadium on the eve of the public mass on Monday evening
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Director: Julian Schnabel
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Oscar Isaacs, Mads Mikkelsen
Three stars
Abdul Jabar Qahraman was meeting supporters in his campaign office in the southern Afghan province of Helmand when a bomb hidden under a sofa exploded on Wednesday.
The blast in the provincial capital Lashkar Gah killed the Afghan election candidate and at least another three people, Interior Minister Wais Ahmad Barmak told reporters. Another three were wounded, while three suspects were detained, he said.
The Taliban – which controls much of Helmand and has vowed to disrupt the October 20 parliamentary elections – claimed responsibility for the attack.
Mr Qahraman was at least the 10th candidate killed so far during the campaign season, and the second from Lashkar Gah this month. Another candidate, Saleh Mohammad Asikzai, was among eight people killed in a suicide attack last week. Most of the slain candidates were murdered in targeted assassinations, including Avtar Singh Khalsa, the first Afghan Sikh to run for the lower house of the parliament.
The same week the Taliban warned candidates to withdraw from the elections. On Wednesday the group issued fresh warnings, calling on educational workers to stop schools from being used as polling centres.
It's up to you to go green
Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.
“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”
When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.
He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.
“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.
One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.
The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.
Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.
But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8
Power: 712hp at 6,100rpm
Torque: 881Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 19.6 l/100km
Price: Dh380,000
On sale: now
The biog
Favourite book: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
Favourite holiday destination: Spain
Favourite film: Bohemian Rhapsody
Favourite place to visit in the UAE: The beach or Satwa
Children: Stepdaughter Tyler 27, daughter Quito 22 and son Dali 19
BIO
Favourite holiday destination: Turkey - because the government look after animals so well there.
Favourite film: I love scary movies. I have so many favourites but The Ring stands out.
Favourite book: The Lord of the Rings. I didn’t like the movies but I loved the books.
Favourite colour: Black.
Favourite music: Hard rock. I actually also perform as a rock DJ in Dubai.
THE LOWDOWN
Romeo Akbar Walter
Rating: 2/5 stars
Produced by: Dharma Productions, Azure Entertainment
Directed by: Robby Grewal
Cast: John Abraham, Mouni Roy, Jackie Shroff and Sikandar Kher
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
