Palestinians have condemned a video showing Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir telling imprisoned Hamas figure Hassan Salama that he wanted him killed.
The footage, posted by Mr Ben-Gvir on social media, appears to show him speaking to Mr Salama inside his cell while surrounded by Israeli security forces. The minister said the video was recorded two weeks ago.
“I want to kill you. …. I want you executed,” Mr Ben-Gvir tells the prisoner in the recording. He also repeats his calls for the execution of Palestinian prisoners.
Raed Abu al-Hummus, head of the Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs, said the footage showed that “degradation and depravity have reached their highest levels”.
He described conditions inside Israeli prisons as “organised terrorism” and condemned the minister’s conduct.
The Palestinian Prisoners Media Office called the incident “a cheap political and electoral stunt” ahead of Israel’s October 27 elections. It described the encounter as a “cowardly act of bullying against a defenceless and handcuffed prisoner”, saying Israeli authorities were responsible for Mr Salama’s safety.
Hamas said the threat represented a signal of “new crimes” against Palestinian detainees and pledged to continue efforts to secure their release.
Ben-Gvir’s threats against Palestinian prisoners
Mr Salama has been imprisoned by Israel for 30 years and is serving multiple life sentences over his role in a series of Hamas-orchestrated attacks in 1996, including bus bombings.
The latest video follows other incidents in which Mr Ben-Gvir has directly threatened or taunted Palestinian prisoners. In August, he posted footage of himself entering the cells of Palestinian women and boasting about their inadequate conditions.
Last year, he was seen taunting Marwan Barghouti, a long-imprisoned Fatah leader, in his cell.
Israel’s Knesset approved legislation in March allowing the death penalty for Palestinian prisoners in certain cases. The measure, strongly supported by Mr Ben-Gvir and his Jewish Power party, does not allow the death penalty for Jewish Israelis.
The legislation prompted criticism and protests from countries in the region over its implications for Palestinian prisoners.
Mr Ben-Gvir has also called for the “emigration” of Palestinians from Gaza and the occupied West Bank. In July, he unveiled a seven-year plan branded “Disengagement 710”, which he said would remove Gaza’s roughly two million residents through what he termed “voluntary emigration”.
He has said that, if re-elected, he would establish a migration ministry to expel Palestinians. He has also backed the rebuilding of Jewish settlements in Gaza and pushed plans to annex large parts of the occupied Palestinian territory.
