This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir is planning to skip a UN police chiefs conference in New York this week amid legal pressure over his prison policies and “involvement in war crimes,” Israeli media reported.
Ben-Gvir’s office has yet to confirm the cancellation of the visit, the Jerusalem Post reported Saturday.
The report came a day after the Israeli daily Haaretz, citing ministry officials, said the decision was made amid planned demonstrations against Ben-Gvir’s visit and growing calls by human rights groups for his investigation and arrest.
Earlier in the week, the Hind Rajab Foundation, a Belgium-based group known for filing legal cases against Israeli soldiers and officials around the world, urged US authorities to detain and prosecute Ben-Gvir over his prison policies. His office has not yet confirmed whether the reported cancellation was linked to legal pressure.
Ben-Gvir was scheduled to attend the UN Chiefs of Police Summit in New York on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The Hind Rajab Foundation said it and the New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights filed a complaint with the US Justice Department and urged New York Attorney General Letitia James to launch an investigation.
The foundation said Ben-Gvir has “used his authority to enact a policy of systematic torture, murder, abuse and forced displacement,” particularly within the Israel Prisons Service, which falls under his oversight.
The groups argued that James has the authority to investigate Ben-Gvir because “a number of New York residents have been harmed by Ben-Gvir’s criminal conduct and because Ben-Gvir may also be engaging in criminal conduct while in New York.”
They cited 11 alleged cases involving New York residents, including 10 people on aid flotillas bound for Gaza in the last two years who were “subjected to torture and abuse” after being detained by Israel.
READ: Trump says Netanyahu asked for meeting at White House
The Israeli war on Gaza, launched on Oct. 8, 2023, with US backing, has devastated nearly 90% of the enclave’s civilian infrastructure and killed more than 73,000 Palestinians.
The letter also referred to a Palestinian American who was “subjected to starvation and other torture methods while detained in an Israeli prison.”
“The #HindRajabFoundation welcomes reports that Israeli Minister Ben-Gvir has canceled his NY visit following legal action by HRF and the Center for Constitutional Rights.
“Israeli political and military leaders have traveled the world expecting impunity. That expectation is beginning to erode,” the organization said on US social media company X on Saturday.
This marks the second US trip Ben-Gvir has canceled within a month. Haaretz said he also scrapped a planned private visit last month after reportedly facing visa-related difficulties.
The newspaper added that, unlike the private trip, Ben-Gvir was not expected to face entry issues for the UN conference, as he was due to lead an official Israeli delegation.
READ: Israel’s Ben-Gvir faces US complaint over alleged war crimes: Rights group
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
- Cholera outbreak kills 30, infects 800 in West Kordofan: Sudanese group
- Israeli occupiers burn down restaurant in occupied West Bank
- Cargo vessel comes under attack off Yemen’s Red Sea coast, British maritime agency says
- Egypt rules out ‘popular normalization’ with Israel without just peace, Palestinian state
- Qatar resumes all maritime activity after week-long pause
- Jailed Gaza hospital director faces life-threatening condition, lawyer says
- Israel’s Ben-Gvir to skip UN police summit in New York amid legal pressure: Reports
- Trump says Netanyahu asked for meeting at White House
- Iran holds mass funeral prayer for slain supreme leader
- Moroccans celebrate historic World Cup quarterfinal berth after 3-0 win over Canada
- Iranian president criticises international silence over Israeli actions
- Israeli strike kills Palestinian in Gaza as army continues demolitions
- Lebanon says 400,000 displaced people have returned south as government prepares reconstruction plan
- Medvedev says Strait of Hormuz gives Iran leverage comparable to ‘nuclear weapon’
- Israeli intelligence rejects Netanyahu’s request to back claim Iran’s nuclear program was completely destroyed: Report
- Iran rejects UK-France Hormuz statement, warns against foreign military presence
- Egypt celebrates historic first-ever World Cup Round of 16 qualification
- Rights center documents 83 Israeli attacks on Christians in 3 months, mostly in occupied Jerusalem
- Two scorpions in a jar
- The funeral that reveals a world divided
- The geopolitics of energy storage: Who will control the batteries of the Middle East?
- Israeli army confirms authenticity of image showing Palestinian detainee abused in Gaza
- Israeli army disperses protest in southern West Bank, injures, arrests Palestinians
- Israeli drone strikes injure 2 in southern Lebanon despite framework agreement
- Israeli spyware used against ex-Greek MEP during probe of illegal surveillance: Report
- Gulf states express solidarity with Syria after deadly Damascus cafe bombing
- UAE thwarts ‘sophisticated’ cyberattacks targeting financial sector
- Israeli army ends Givati Brigade mission in southern Lebanon after 8 months
- Australian police review war crime allegations against citizen as war in Gaza crosses 1000th day
- China calls for ‘proper settlement’ to end disruptions in Strait of Hormuz
- Israel approves 13 new illegal settlements as Palestinians warn of Jerusalem’s further isolation
- One thousand days of war: Why Israel failed to defeat Palestine
- 1,022 infants among more than 21,500 children killed during Gaza’s 1,000-day war
- West African states begin withdrawal from ICC
- Google disrupts Israel-linked proxy network used to spread malware
- Israel says 26,000 troops treated since Gaza war began, most for psychological conditions
- Israel planned to target Iranian negotiators to derail talks, US acted to prevent it – report
- France, Italy to form new international force for southern Lebanon
- Iran tells UN it will guarantee safe passage through Strait of Hormuz for 60 days
- Egypt and Turkey sign agreement to enhance cooperation on strategic transport corridors
- Demonstrators in Paris stage silent march over 1,000 days of genocide in Gaza
- Palestinian Foreign Ministry denies claims it asked South Africa to withdraw ICJ case against Israel
- Syria reassures Lebanon it has no intention of military intervention
- Berri warns Israel is seeking to provoke conflict between Lebanese army and Hezbollah
- Hamas official reveals more than 3,500 Israeli ceasefire violations in Gaza
- Great power competition under Trump: The Greenland crisis as a case study
- Israel tightens solitary confinement of jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, his office says
- Rouzaina… the true face of Syria
- 6 killed, 22 injured in bomb explosion at cafe in Syrian capital
- Syrian Airlines launches first flight from Amsterdam to Damascus after years of suspension, media says
