Almog Cohen (politician)

Cohen was born in Be'er-Sheva and lives in Ofakim.{{Cite web |last=Israel |first=David |date=24 May 2023 |title=Ben Gvir Bumps Rogue MK Almog Cohen from Security Committee |url=https://www.jewishpress.com/news/politics/ben-gvir-bumps-rogue-mk-almog-cohen-from-security-committee/2023/05/24/ |access-date=7 November 2023 |language=en-US}} Cohen is a graduate of the Afiki Eretz yeshiva of Bnei Akiva in Ofakim. His grandfather, Rabbi Eliyahu Hadad, was a rabbi in Tunis.{{Cite web |date=2 August 2022 |title=כשברקע הצעת מפלגת הציונות הדתית להצעת משה סעדה במקום ה-7, בעוצמה יהודית חושפים את המועמד שלהם - אלמוג כהן. |url=https://www.inn.co.il/news/573142 |access-date=7 November 2023 |website=www.inn.co.il |language=he}} During his time in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), he served in the Target Intelligence Unit.{{Cite web |date=18 October 2022 |title=בחירות 2022: איפה המועמדים שירתו בצבא? |url=https://www.mako.co.il/pzm-soldiers/Article-c66b9a8f47bc381026.htm |access-date=7 November 2023 |website=mako}}

Cohen worked as a police officer for 11 years.{{Cite web |date=27 January 2023 |title=Israeli lawmaker tweets 'keep killing them' after deadly Jenin raid |url=https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-almog-cohen-tweet-keep-killing-jenin-raid |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=Middle East Eye |language=en}} After retiring from the police, Cohen became owner of the Pancake House, a restaurant in Be'er-Sheva. Cohen stated that after opening the Pancake House in 2018, the Bedouin threatened his personal safety.{{Cite web |last=Levy |first=Eyal |date=18 November 2021 |title=The wild south: a difficult journey in the burning Negev |url=https://www.israelhayom.co.il/magazine/shishabat/article/5766048 |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=Israel Hayom}}

Cohen is the leader of the Negev Rescue Committee,{{Cite web |last=Israel |first=David |title=Police Nix Armed Militia Fighting Crime in Southern Israel, 'Negev Rescue Committee' Vows to Stay|work=Jewish Press |date=18 March 2022|url=https://www.jewishpress.com/news/israel/police-nixes-armed-militia-fighting-crime-in-southern-israel-negev-rescue-committee-vows-to-stay/2022/03/18/ |access-date=2 August 2022 |language=en-US}} which planned to establish the "Barel Rangers", a civilian armed militia force in the Negev, in which nearly 200 recruits had been enlisted.

Cohen's militia was created for the purpose of "fight[ing] crime among Bedouins", with Cohen posting a photo of him kneeling over three Bedouins with the caption “Those down there remember what I did in the army.” Cohen endorsed an operation aimed at Bedouins in the Naqab, which he called “Crystal Night".{{Cite web |last=Jansezian |first=Nicole |date=22 November 2022 |title=Are the members of the Jewish Power party radicals, activists or ideological diehards? |url=https://allisrael.com/are-the-members-of-the-jewish-power-party-radicals-activists-or-ideological-diehards |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=All Israel News |language=en-US}}

However, in response to public backlash, the police withdrew their endorsement of its registration for the status of "police volunteers", causing the Beersheba municipality to order the cession of the establishment of the militia.{{Cite news |title=With Police Backing, Activist Sets Up Armed Group 'To Save' Israel's Negev |language=en |work=Haaretz|first=Nati|last=Yefet|date=17 March 2022|url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2022-03-17/ty-article/.premium/activist-sets-up-armed-ranger-unit-in-israels-negev-with-police-support/00000180-5bd5-de8c-a1aa-dbfd9b840000 |access-date=2 August 2022}}{{Cite web |last= |title=Activist sets up armed militia 'to save' Israel's Negev |url=https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/society/1647776129-activist-forms-armed-group-to-save-israel-s-negev |access-date=2 August 2022 |website=I24news |language=en}}

Cohen participated in repelling the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.{{cite web|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/citizens-including-an-mk-helped-repel-hamas-attack-in-ofakim/|title=Citizens, including an MK, helped repel Hamas attack in Ofakim|work=The Times of Israel|first=Carrie|last=Keller-Lynn|date=18 October 2023|access-date=6 February 2024}} He has suggested killing the Palestinians in Gaza taking advantage of Ramadan.

In 2022, a Negev Bedouin family called for the re-opening of a police brutality investigation into Cohen over a 2013 incident. The family accused Cohen of having violently assaulted them.{{Cite news |last=Breiner |first=Josh |date=31 August 2022 |title=Bedouins Call for Probe After Far-right Israeli Candidate Boasts of Violently Assaulting Them |language=en |work=Haaretz |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2022-10-31/ty-article/.premium/bedouins-call-for-probe-after-far-right-israeli-candidate-boasts-of-violent-assault/00000184-2dcf-d8ca-a3ff-bdff83780000 |access-date=7 November 2023}} The three individuals claimed that Cohen assaulted their groin areas, urinated on their faces, and threatened them with "a bullet to the head". The men stated they were able to identify Cohen as the perpetrator owing to a social media post in which he posted photo of him kneeling over them.{{Cite web |title=Israeli lawmaker tweets 'keep killing them' after deadly Jenin raid |url=https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-almog-cohen-tweet-keep-killing-jenin-raid |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=Middle East Eye |language=en}}

Cohen became a regional coordinator for Otzma Yehudit, and acquired the nickname "the sheriff" within the party owing to his law enforcement and militia background. Ahead of the 2022 Israeli legislative elections, he was placed seventh on the list led by Otzma Yehudit and the Religious Zionist Party.{{cite web |date=15 September 2022 |title= |script-title=he:הציונות הדתית בראשות בצלאל סמוטריץ ועוצמה יהודית בראשות איתמר בן גביר |trans-title=Religious Zionism led by Bezalel Smotrich and Otzma Yehudit led by Itamar Ben Gvir |url=https://www.gov.il/he/Departments/General/otzmayehudit_tzyunutdatit_list18 |publisher=Government of Israel |language=he}} He was successfully elected an MK after the list won 14 seats.{{Cite web |author1=Bachner |first=Michael |date=15 November 2022 |title=As 25th Knesset sworn in, president urges MKs to end 'addiction' to toxic discourse |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/as-25th-knesset-sworn-in-president-urges-mks-to-end-addiction-to-toxic-discourse/ |access-date=25 November 2022 |website=The Times of Israel |language=en-US}}

File:Israeli legislative election, November 2022 (KBG GPO213).jpeg faction to meet President Isaac Herzog]]

Following his election to the Knesset in 2022, Cohen suggested in an interview that then-outgoing Prime Minister Yair Lapid deserved to be thrown in prison. In a televised interview, Cohen stated "[i]n a proper country [Lapid] would be behind bars".{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=19 December 2022 |title=Netanyahu seeking to discuss legal reforms with Supreme Court chief Hayut – report |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-seeking-to-discuss-legal-reforms-with-supreme-court-chief-hayut-report/ |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=The Times of Israel |language=en-US}}

Shortly after taking office, Cohen introduced legislation in the Knesset to bar NGOs from receiving donations from organizations who are funded by countries that do not recognize Israels' sovereignty.{{Cite web |date=20 December 2022 |title=MK Cohen proposes bill to fight foreign govt. funding of incitement |url=https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/364693 |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=Israel National News}} Cohen has endorsed a blanket ban on the use of TikTok in East Jerusalem, calling the platform “a crazy incitement zone that is creating the next terrorist.”{{Cite web |last=Bachner |first=Michael |date=16 February 2023 |title=Coalition MK calls Palestinians 'Palestinazis,' urges TikTok ban in East Jerusalem |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/coalition-mk-calls-palestinians-palestinazis-urges-tiktok-ban-in-east-jerusalem/ |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=The Times of Israel |language=en-US}}

In February 2023, Cohen confronted protestors at a demonstration at Tel Aviv University, where a group of students held a protest in opposition to the recent army raid in Jenin. During the confrontation, Cohen attempted to tear a Palestinian flag away from one of the protestors.{{Cite web |date=3 February 2023 |title=Israeli far-right MK clashes with pro-Palestinian protestors at TAU |url=https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-730492 |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=The Jerusalem Post}} Cohen co-sponsored legislation in 2023 to make flying an enemy flag a criminal offense punishable by a year in jail, which would include displays of the Palestinian flag.{{Cite news |title=Israel Advances Law Imposing One-year Jail Term for Public Display of Palestinian Flags |work= Haaretz|first=Noa|last=Shpigel|date=18 May 2023 |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-05-18/ty-article/.premium/israel-advances-law-barring-public-display-of-palestinian-flags/00000188-2b59-d6e4-ab9d-ebf965230000 |access-date=8 November 2023}}{{Cite web |date=17 May 2023 |title=Bill to bar flying of enemy flags passes initial reading in Knesset |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/bill-to-bar-flying-of-enemy-flags-passes-initial-reading-in-knesset/ |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=The Times of Israel}}

In June 2023, Cohen was ousted from the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee by party leader Itamar Ben-Gvir, with fellow Otzma Yehudit MK Limor Son Har-Melech taking his place. Cohen had reportedly had a falling-out with Ben-Gvir the prior month over his criticism of an ultimatum made by the party leader regarding the national budget. Ben-Gvir had threatened the government's budget plans if they did not allocate increased funds for the Ministry for the Development of the Negev and the Galilee. Cohen broke with Ben-Gvir by indicating he would vote for the budget agreement regardless.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=6 June 2023 |title=Otzma Yehudit MK Cohen is ousted from Knesset panel over insubordination to Ben Gvir |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/otzma-yehudit-mk-cohen-is-ousted-from-knesset-panel-over-insubordination-to-ben-gvir/ |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=The Times of Israel |language=en-US}}

Cohen was expected to resign his position in April 2025 and become a deputy minister, which would enable former MK Zvi Sukkot to return to the Knesset.{{cite web|title=Smotrich reverses resignation as PM helps patch rift among his far-right partners|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/smotrich-reverses-resignation-as-pm-helps-patch-rift-among-his-far-right-partners/|website=The Times of Israel|date=3 April 2025|access-date=5 April 2025|last=Sokol|first=Sam}} Cohen resigned on 6 April.{{cite web|url=https://main.knesset.gov.il/en/mk/apps/mklobby/main/current-knesset-mks/mk-replacement|title=Personnel changes in the 25th Knesset|work=Knesset|accessdate=7 April 2025}}

Cohen has been described as a far-right politician by The New York Times. Prior to his election to the Knesset, Cohen expressed several extremist views on social media. In a deleted post, Cohen called for soldiers and policemen to kill, instead of arrest, Palestinian suspects, and called "to wash the streets of Gaza with blood".

Cohen has referred to Palestinian villages in the West Bank as "Palestinazi villages", and accused Palestinians of supporting a Nazi ideology. In 2023, Cohen claimed that "Palestinians are engaging in Nazism, in murdering Jews. There is a Nazi culture there". While Cohen conceded that he does not believe all Palestinians are Nazis, he alleged that social media platform TikTok was being used to spread Nazi ideology among Palestinians. He called for the killing of Hamas and the invasion of Rafah (which people took as a call to kill Palestinians) in the Ramadan.{{Cite web|url=https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20240326-the-ramadan-is-the-best-time-to-kill-them-theyre-weak-and-tired/|title='The Ramadan is the best time to kill them. They're weak and tired.'|date=26 March 2024|website=Middle East Monitor}}

In 2022, Almog Cohen expressed support for the Russian all-out invasion of Ukraine.{{Cite web |last=Ravid |first=Barak |date=2 November 2022 |title=The rise of Israel's extreme right |url=https://www.axios.com/2022/11/02/israel-election-extreme-far-right-rise-netanyahu-victory |access-date=7 November 2023 |website=Axios}} Cohen slammed U.S. President Joe Biden after he characterized the current government as "extreme", claiming that Biden was uninformed about Israel.{{Cite web |date=10 July 2023 |title=Israeli politicians deny coalition is 'extreme' after Biden remarks |url=https://www.thejc.com/news/israel/israeli-politicians-deny-coalition-is-extreme-after-biden-remarks-3K77OvCvxhqpfyY3N85K9f |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=The Jewish Chronicle}}

In since-deleted posts, Cohen expressed strong opposition to pride parades, stating that "the pride parade is a completely animalistic parade of unbridled and unrestrained sex partying, while harassing boys and minors". He added that he considers pride parades to be "a shocking spectacle of hard and sick porn".

In January 2023, Twitter suspended Cohen's account following a tweet in which he expressed support for the actions of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) during a raid in Jenin that resulted in the deaths of nine Palestinians.{{Cite news |last=Shpigel |first=Noa |date=27 January 2023 |title='Continue Killing Them': Twitter Deletes Post of Israeli MK Who Said Soldiers Did 'Nice Work' in Fatal Jenin Raid |language=en |work=Haaretz |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-01-27/ty-article/.premium/continue-killing-them-far-right-mk-says-israeli-soldiers-did-nice-work-in-jenin-raid/00000185-f2ff-def6-a7b5-ffff9fe10000 |access-date=8 November 2023}}

In a tweet, Cohen praised the IDF, stating "Good and professional work by the fighters in Jenin, keep killing them." He criticized Twitter's decision to suspend his account, calling it "the worst kind of censorship". He went on to defend his statement, claiming that his intention was clearly to target "terrorists involved and not bystanders".{{Cite web |title=After IDF raid, suspended from Twitter for call to 'keep killing them' |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/after-idf-raid-mk-suspended-from-twitter-for-call-to-keep-killing-them/ |access-date=29 January 2023 |website=The Times of Israel|date=27 January 2023 |language=en-US}}

In February 2023, Cohen received public outcry for broadcasting a rant in which he compared Arab members of the Knesset to animals.{{Cite news |date=22 February 2023 |title=Far-right Lawmaker Condemned for Comparing Arab MKs to Animals |language=en |work=Haaretz |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-02-22/ty-article/.premium/far-right-lawmaker-condemned-for-comparing-arab-mks-to-animals/00000186-78a0-dd14-a5a7-78e4c5530000 |access-date=7 November 2023}} Cohen explicitly stated that MKs from the predominantly Arab Hadash–Ta'al alliance were "not worthy of being sheep, they’re not humans", and vowed to make "their lives miserable". The Times of Israel reported that Cohen was filmed "making animal calling sounds" to draw the attention of Ofer Cassif, the sole Jewish MP in the Hadash–Ta'al alliance.

Cohen refused to apologize for his rant, stating that his "goal is to make them feel uncomfortable" and that he considered them supporters of terrorism.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=21 February 2023 |title='They're inhuman': Far-right MK likens Arab party MKs to sheep, refuses to apologize |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-video-from-knesset-far-right-mk-likens-lawmaker-from-arab-party-to-farm-animal/ |access-date=7 November 2023 |website=The Times of Israel |language=en-US}} In March 2023, he was formally reprimanded for his comments by the Knesset's ethics committee, which led him to lose some parliamentary rights for two days.{{Cite web |date=6 March 2023 |title=Knesset ethics panel reprimands far-right MK who likened Arab party MKs to sheep |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/knesset-ethics-panel-reprimands-far-right-mk-who-likened-arab-party-mks-to-sheep/ |access-date=7 November 2023 |website=The Times of Israel |language=en-US}}

Owing to his background as the founder of the Negev Rescue Committee, Cohen was referred to as "the warrior from the Negev"{{Cite web |date=3 February 2023 |title=Israeli far-right MK clashes with pro-Palestinian protestors at TAU |url=https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-730492 |access-date=8 November 2023 |website=The Jerusalem Post |language=en-US}} by Itamar Ben-Gvir. Cohen is married, with two children.

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Category:1987 births

Category:Israeli people of Tunisian-Jewish descent

Category:Israeli police officers

Category:Living people

Category:Members of the 25th Knesset (2022–)

Category:Otzma Yehudit politicians

Category:Israeli people of the Israel–Hamas war

Category:Police brutality in Israel