“I expressed my professional reservations and warned against the establishment of this institution, because it is an unnecessary measure that will cause damage to the country’s security”, Shabtai said in a statement published by the Aruth Sheva news portal.

Last weekend, the press revealed excerpts from a letter from the official to Ben Gvir in which he questioned the plan, saying it would lead to a chaos in law enforcement by taking over police functions.

This Sunday the right-wing coalition approved the reduction of the budget of 83 government agencies, including the Ministries of Health and Education, by 1.5 percent to finance the new military corps.

Last week, facing a wave of protests in the country, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was forced to postpone parliamentary discussion of a judicial reform, a decision criticized by Ben Gvir, a partner in the alliance, who threatened to leave the Executive.

In exchange for the minister’s backing, the head of government promised to form a National Guard and place it under his control.

The tension reached its peak in early April, when Ben Gvir dismissed the commander of that agency in Jerusalem, Ami Eshed, a decision frozen by Israel’s attorney general, Gali Baharav.

Almost simultaneously, some 40 former police chiefs called on Netanyahu to dismiss Ben Gvir, warning that his actions will provoke a new intifada (Palestinian uprising).

In a letter sent to the prime minister, five former commissioners and 33 former superintendents warned that Ben Gvir ‘acts contrary to the powers granted to him by law’.

jrr/jav/lam/rob.