Muslim Recruitment to Israeli Police Plummets Amid Policy Changes Under Minister Ben Gvir

Recent data from the Israeli Ministry of National Security and the Israel Police reveal a sharp decline in the recruitment of Muslim candidates into the police force during the four years that Itamar Ben Gvir has served as National Security Minister. Muslims constitute over 18% of Israel's population, yet in 2025, only 96 Muslim recruits joined the police out of 3,294 new officers, representing a mere 0.26% of new recruits, about 70 times less than their population share. This underrepresentation excludes the Druze community, whose recruitment rates remain stable and higher.

The decline follows policy changes implemented by Ben Gvir, including stricter recruitment criteria requiring minimum psychometric scores and Hebrew language proficiency. These requirements reversed previous affirmative action measures that allowed lower scores and limited Hebrew skills to increase Arab representation in the police. Officials attribute the drop in Muslim recruitment to these raised standards.

Despite an overall increase in police recruitment over the past four years, driven by improved conditions and extensive social media campaigns, the number of Arab recruits (excluding Druze) has decreased. For example, Muslim recruits numbered 135 in 2022, rose slightly to 165 in 2023, then dropped to 143 in 2024 and further to 96 in 2025. Early 2026 figures show a continued decline with only 64 Muslim recruits out of 2,276 new officers.

This trend coincides with rising violence in Arab communities and government budget reallocations away from the Arab sector. It also occurs amid growing societal polarization and increasing opposition to integrating Arabs into key state roles, especially as elections approach. In response to criticism, Minister Ben Gvir stated, "You will continue to talk, and we will continue to work," emphasizing the government's focus on security efforts despite public debate.

Key Points: - Muslim recruitment to the Israeli police dropped drastically under Minister Itamar Ben Gvir's tenure. - Stricter recruitment standards requiring psychometric scores and Hebrew proficiency replaced previous affirmative action policies. - In 2025, only 0.26% of new police recruits were Muslim, far below their population share. - Overall police recruitment increased, but Arab (non-Druze) participation declined. - The decline aligns with rising violence in Arab communities and budget cuts to the sector. - Ben Gvir responded to criticism by affirming continued government work despite public discourse.

Topic: security Israel_relevant: true Entities: {"people": ["Itamar Ben Gvir", "Danny Levi"], "organizations": ["Israel Police", "Ministry of National Security"], "places": ["Israel", "Basmat Tivon"]}