Israel’s national security minister celebrated his 50th birthday with a golden noose on his cake just over a month after he successfully campaigned for the death penalty for Palestinian terrorist convicts.
Footage on social media showed Itamar Ben-Gvir receiving a cake from his wife with a golden noose which wished the minister a Happy Birthday and added: ‘Sometimes dreams come true’, per translation.
The politician could be seen wearing a golden noose pin as his wife Ayala handed him the cake to mark the milestone. The event, attended by senior Israeli officials and police figures, reportedly took place at a villa in southern Israel.
The golden noose became a core symbol for Ben-Gvir’s far-right party Otzma Yehudit as they campaigned for the death penalty exclusively for Palestinian terrorism convicts. Many politicians wore a golden noose pin as they attended Knesset amid the campaign.
Israel’s legislature made death by hanging a default sentence for terrorism-related offences at the end of March. The death penalty for ordinary crimes has been abolished in Israel since 1954 and the country has not carried out executions since 1962.
Human rights organisations and world leaders have criticised the legislation as discriminatory as it will primarily impact West Bank Palestinians.
Foreign ministers of Australia, Germany, France, Italy, New Zealand and the United Kingdom issued a joint statement prior to its passing expressing concern that the legislation would “risk undermining Israel’s commitments with regards to democratic principles.”
Upon its passing through Knesset with a final 62-48 vote in favour, Ben-Gvir could be seen celebrating with a bottle of champagne as lawmakers cheered on the decision.
Ben-Gvir’s birthday party was attended by a number of senior officers of the Israeli police and prison service, which was subject to controversy as homicide levels in Israel have reached record highs.
Just two days prior to Ben-Gvir’s birthday celebrations, two men in their thirties were shot dead in central Israel, bringing the death toll of this year to 111, including 95 Arab citizens, Israeli media outlet Haaretz reported.
Former prime minister Naftali Bennet called on police officers not to attend the minister’s event. In a post on his X account, he wrote: “Any public servant, in any role and in any government body, who violates their duty of loyalty to the state and exploits their position in a political rather than a state-serving manner will be immediately dismissed.”
Ben-Gvir retorted on X: “Naftali has no friends, and also no work relationships — send him a cake from the party.”
The event was also attended by right wing activist Benzi Gopstein, who was convicted for inciting racism in 2024 after he’d been charged for inciting violence, racism and support for terrorism in 2019. Gopstein and his affiliated groups have been sanctioned by Singapore, the UK, Canada and the former Biden administration for acts of violence against Palestinian and Arab communities.
Ben-Gvir’s personal aide, Osher Gabay and far-right activist Mordechai David were also present, according to Haaretz.
