Sa’ar Slams Ben Gvir Over Flotilla Video: "You Knowingly Caused Damage to the State"

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir today (Wednesday) published footage from a tour he conducted at the Port of Ashdod, where flotilla activists arrested by IDF forces were brought. In the footage distributed by Ben Gvir, the flotilla activists are seen handcuffed, while the minister waves an Israeli flag and addresses them in Hebrew.

In one segment, Ben Gvir is heard saying: "We are the homeowners." Later, the minister also addressed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and said: "I say to the prime minister — keep them with us for a lot longer, let us place them in the prisons for terrorists."

The post drew a sharp response from Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar: "You knowingly caused damage to the state in this disgraceful display, and not for the first time. You threw away enormous professional and successful efforts made by many, many people — from IDF soldiers to Foreign Ministry employees and many other good people. No, you are not the face of Israel."

Ben Gvir did not remain silent, and later published a response on X: "There are those in the government who still have not understood how one must behave toward supporters of terror. Israel’s foreign minister is expected to understand that Israel has stopped being a punching bag. Anyone who comes to our territory to support terror and identify with Hamas will get hit, and we will not turn the other cheek."

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni addressed the footage published by Ben Gvir and said: "His behavior is unacceptable. We expect an apology from Israel over the treatment of the participants — we will summon the ambassador and demand official explanations about the incident."

At the same time, the Foreign Ministry continues to deal with a wave of claims and false reports spread in recent days by anti-Israel activists following the takeover of the flotilla. Just yesterday, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson was required to address claims that the IDF opened fire at flotilla participants, and clarified: "Only non-lethal measures were used against the ships, and there were no casualties."