Police New Year Ceremony Held Amidst Rank Dispute

The Israeli Police's Rosh Hashanah (New Year) ceremony is scheduled to take place this morning at the Police Academy in Beit Shemesh. However, unlike previous years, the ceremony will reportedly not include the awarding of promotions or ranks. This decision comes amid an ongoing dispute between Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir over a series of appointments.

Sources within the police, including officers who were expecting promotions, have sharply criticized the Police Commissioner. They claim Shabtai "destroyed the ceremony and the atmosphere" by proceeding with appointments not agreed upon by the minister. These officers believe that if the Commissioner had genuinely wanted to resolve the issue with Ben-Gvir, he would have engaged in direct dialogue until an agreement was reached, suggesting his current approach is "cunning."

Officers stated that the disagreement over the appointments is the direct cause for the ceremony proceeding without the traditional rank conferrals. They expressed that the Commissioner "chose to act cunningly and proceed with appointments not agreed upon by the minister, and therefore there are no ranks at the ceremony today."

It remains to be seen whether Commissioner Shabtai will address the political tensions in his speech to officers. Minister Ben-Gvir is also expected to speak at the event, though his attendance was uncertain at the time of reporting. Ben-Gvir had previously stated he would not sign new appointments during an election period. Yesterday, Ben-Gvir attended a similar ceremony for the Israel Prison Service, which did proceed with rank awards, while the dispute within the police continued.