Israel Police fought off Hamas terrorists, stopped Oct 7 massacre, says former Police Chief Shabtai

In his first speech since resigning his post last week, former Israel Police Commissioner Yakov (Kobi) Shabtai praised the Israeli police force and emphasized the heroism of its officers during the Hamas invasion on Oct. 7, while calling to keep the police out of politics.

“We have been at war for over nine months, one of the most difficult wars that the State of Israel has known since its founding. There are heroic stories of police officers and soldiers here that will be told for many years to come,” Shabtai said at the “personal resilience and security conference” at Western Galilee College on Monday.

“The Israel Police officers and its fighters fought the murderous terrorist squads in face-to-face battles, protected the civilians with their bodies and stopped the massacre,” Shabtai said.

In a possible jab at Israel Defense Forces, Shabtai emphasized that the police had “finished all the probes, we didn’t call it an ‘investigation.’ We got down to the resolution of who was standing where [during the invasion] and how the operational readiness was.”

“Unfortunately, we ended this day of battle with a heavy price paid by the police. A total of 63 policemen lost their lives. Over 273 were injured as a result of shooting incidents,” Shabtai summed up.

The former commissioner also added thinly veiled jabs at his former superior, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, with whom he clashed numerous times during his service.

“I hope that whoever replaces me in the position will be careful to keep the police non-political and will be able to draw clear lines between the political echelon and the police as an independent body, that can only do its job according to the law and the conscience of the law.”

Shabtai said his time leading the police “was characterized by great tension” on the political front, “certainly for me, as the one who leads the Israel Police.”

After Ben Gvir assumed his post, he tried to exert more control over different aspects of the police, including public demands for harsher treatment of protesters during the anti-judicial reform protests last year.

In March 2023, Shabtai said he regretted dismissing the Tel Aviv district commander from his post following Ben Gvir’s orders.

The national security minister’s pick to succeed Shabtai is Amichai Eshed, who is currently serving as acting commissioner while the selection committee investigates concerns raised by Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara over disciplinary measures he received in 2015.

“Don’t harm the police and leave them out of the political discourse. This discourse weakens the organization and will harm its ability to realize its mission,” Shabtai said.