The head of the Central Elections Committee (CEC) ruled on Friday that National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir must delete a highly contentious video of him tormenting activists detained aboard a Gaza-bound flotilla that he uploaded to social media last month.

Supreme Court Deputy Chief Justice Noam Sohlberg, the chair of the CEC, also ordered the far-right minister to pay NIS 23,000 ($7,800) to cover the legal fees associated with the petition, which was filed by the Movement for Quality Government in Israel.

Sohlberg determined that the video, which included uniformed security officers and was taken inside a state facility, constituted unlawful election propaganda with the use of public assets.

Ben Gvir posted the video himself on X with the caption “this is how we welcome terror supporters,” showing him watching with glee as hundreds of foreign activists who had been intercepted on boats bound for Gaza were bound and forced to kneel on the ground.

The treatment of the detainees appeared akin to security forces’ handling of the most severe terrorists in the prisons overseen by Ben Gvir’s office, which has also prompted allegations of abuse. With dozens of bound activists kneeling on the ground, Ben Gvir is seen waving a large Israeli flag and shouting in Hebrew, “Welcome to Israel! We are in charge here!” He also blasts “Hatikva,” Israel’s national anthem, over a loudspeaker, and shouts “Am Yisrael Chai” (the nation of Israel lives)........

© The Times of Israel