Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir plans to classify the southern cities of Ashkelon and Ashdod as “eligible residences” for those seeking firearm licenses.
On Monday, Ben-Gvir posted to social media an article from Haredim-Ashdod, a news outlet serving Ashdod’s ultra-Orthodox community, about his plans.
Following the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas massacre in southern Israel, Ben-Gvir adopted an aggressive policy of putting firearms in the hands of Israeli citizens, arguing that Israelis have a right to defend themselves and that the move would act as a force-multiplier in the fight against terror.
More than 350,000 have applied for firearms permits as a result of Ben-Gvir’s reforms, according to Israel Hayom. More than 205,000 licenses have been issued. The inclusion of Ashdod and Ashkelon would make another 200,000 citizens eligible.
“The right to self-defense has been woefully neglected in Israel over the decades,” Noga Arbell, head of policy at the Jerusalem-based Yachin Center for National Security Research, told JNS.
“A society whose members always rely on someone else to secure it is not sustainable, least of all in the Middle East. And so personal responsibility for safety and the ability to act accordingly are crucial if we are to ensure our survival for future decades and generations,” said Arbell. “Making defensive weapons available to the population is therefore strategically important for Israel’s security.”
While the Jewish state has a citizens’ army, it does not have an armed citizenry. Before the Oct. 7 massacre, only some 150,000 Israelis, or 2% of the population, were legal gun owners, compared to 30% in the United States.
Ben-Gvir, whose views on gun laws mirror those of gun rights advocates in the United States, has loosened existing restrictions in Israel to expand gun ownership. He also has expanded the number of areas classified as “eligible residences,” meaning residents of those places can apply for firearm licenses by virtue of their living there.
In what many Israelis viewed as shocking in post-Oct. 7 hindsight, residents of Sderot, a city less than eight miles from the Gaza border, and which lost more than 50 people in the Hamas invasion, were not eligible for personal gun licenses prior to the attack.
Ashkelon and Ashdod also were targeted on Oct. 7, mainly by rocket fire, though Ashkelon faced an additional threat. “Three terrorists infiltrated the southern industrial area of the city with the intention of advancing further, attacking civilians and taking hostages,” according to the IDF’s website. In that instance, the IDF eliminated the terrorists before they harmed the city’s civilian population.
The inclusion of Ashdod as an eligible city would be especially significant to ultra-Orthodox Jews, who make up 30% of the city’s population. The ultra-Orthodox typically aren’t eligible for licenses, making them vulnerable should their communities fall under attack, (even under Ben-Gvir’s reforms, outside of those living in eligible areas, licenses are generally given only to those with prior military experience).
“In Ashdod, where a large haredi population lives, many today do not meet the existing criteria, which prevents them from protecting themselves in an emergency,” an official told Israel Hayom.
Where cities have been made eligible, such as Beitar Illit, Netivot and Elad, all of which have large haredi populations, haredim have responded positively. Tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox citizens applied for and obtained gun licenses as a result, Israel Hayom reported.
While Ben-Gvir has pointed to several instances of armed citizens stopping terrorists, opponents have attempted to stall his efforts to encourage gun ownership.
In Nov. 2024, the High Court of Justice ordered Ben-Gvir’s ministry to review thousands of gun licenses approved since the start of the Oct. 7 war after hearing a petition by the Labor Party and the Movement for Quality Government. The latter is an NGO that bills itself as independent and non-partisan, but has devoted itself almost exclusively to attacking Netanyahu’s coalition and aligning with left-wing causes.
“Judicial overreach should not be used to further endanger Israelis with preposterous limitations on this most basic of human rights, the right of self-defense,” said Arbell.
“If training is needed, we should make it available to every adult willing to shoulder the responsibility, not overregulate and limit the most basic right a human being, especially Jews, have to life and the protection thereof from violence,” she added.