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Ben-Gvir defends police response in October 7 interview

Questioned by Guy Meroz about the attack happening on his watch, Israel's national security minister credits police and distinguishes his responsibilities from military intelligence.

Channel: C14 Hebrew channel ·

IsraelStory of November 3, 2026Trari Newsroom

Why this story? One of C14's most watched videos since yesterday, with 102,100 views.

C14: Israel's Channel 14, a news channel on the political right, on air since 2014 (as Channel 20 until 2021). 497K subscribers and 758M views.

גיא מרוז מתארח אצל איתמר בן גביר - והם יושבים לשיחה צפופה על בוקר השבעה באוקטובר

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Itamar Ben-Gvir rejects the premise that he should regret being the minister responsible for police when the October 7 attack happened. In a brief interview excerpt, he argues that the police saved the situation, while military intelligence and Gaza intelligence were not his responsibility.

Israel's Channel 14 (C14) published the exchange with broadcaster Guy Meroz from the first episode of "חוזר עם תשובה". The conversation concerns the morning of the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.

Meroz begins by asking where Ben-Gvir was that morning. The minister says he was asleep until Kobi Yaakobi woke him at 6:30 a.m. Yaakobi was then his security secretary.

Asked how he remained reachable on the Jewish Sabbath, Ben-Gvir explains that his national security duties require him to work because lives are at stake. He invokes pikuach nefesh, the Jewish principle that saving life takes precedence over Sabbath restrictions.

Meroz then asks whether, during the journey, he thought about the disaster unfolding on his watch. Ben-Gvir responds that it was fortunate he was the minister responsible for police, crediting the force's response. He adds that he had neither military intelligence, aircraft nor tanks, and was not responsible for intelligence in Gaza.

The excerpt closes with a separate question about awareness: when did he understand the scale of the disaster? Only after several hours, Ben-Gvir says.

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