TEVL AVIV, June 1, 2026 (WAFA) – An internal Israeli police document has revealed that Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has delayed or blocked the publication of public data related to crime, weapons offenses, incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, and attacks carried out by Israeli settlers, preventing the public from accessing information that is supposed to be publicly available.

According to a report by Israel's public broadcaster, which cited an internal spreadsheet managed by the police Freedom of Information Unit, Ben-Gvir has either previously obstructed or continues to obstruct the release of data concerning crime, firearms, reports of shooting incidents in the Negev, as well as issues related to the Al-Aqsa Mosque and events in the occupied West Bank.

While the report did not specify the exact nature of the Jerusalem- and West Bank-related files, assessments suggest they concern settler incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, repeated violations of the site's long-standing status quo, and attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank under the protection of Israeli forces.

Attorney Heidi Negev, Director General of the Freedom of Information Movement, said the minister has no authority to interfere in the publication of such information.

"This is public information, and the minister has no right to intervene in its publication," Negev said, noting that the Freedom of Information Commissioner reports to the Police Commissioner rather than the minister and operates as an independent body.

Approximately six months ago, Ben-Gvir introduced a new police procedure requiring officers to refer any request for information submitted to the police to his office for approval. The measure was widely criticized as being contrary to both Israeli law and the principles of the Freedom of Information Act.

Sources at the time reported that Israeli police maintained a detailed tracking system for all pending information requests, including timelines showing the status of each request.

The spreadsheet, details of which were published Sunday by Kan 11, lists 119 information requests submitted over the past two years. It records the submission date of each request, the date the response was prepared, when it was ready for publication, and when Ben-Gvir approved its release.

According to the document, ministerial approval was sometimes delayed for several months and, in some cases, was never granted.

One example involved a request for statistical data on the arrests of Palestinians. Submitted in July 2025 and ready for publication by August 2025, the data was not approved for release until March 2026.

In another case, a request for information regarding settlers who committed crimes against Palestinians was submitted on June 8, 2025, and completed four days later. However, approval for publication was withheld for four months.

Data related to domestic violence was also reportedly delayed for six months in Ben-Gvir's office.

The report further noted a long list of requests whose responses are complete but remain unpublished due to pending ministerial approval. These include:

• Data on exclusion orders issued from the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound since 2020; response completed, approval delayed by 97 days.

• Statistics on murders, firearm-related injuries, and thefts; response completed, approval delayed by 88 days.

• Crime statistics for 2024 and 2025; response completed, approval delayed by 88 days.

• Information regarding police officers and personnel movements between stations; response completed, approval delayed by 88 days.

• Data on weapons in unrecognized Bedouin villages in the Negev and the number of police reports concerning gunfire incidents; response completed, approval delayed by 63 days.

K.T