Avi Dichter | |
|---|---|
 Dichter in 2012 | |
| Ministerial roles | |
| 2006–2009 | Minister of Internal Security |
| 2012–2013 | Minister of Home Front Defence |
| 2022– | Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development |
| Faction represented in theKnesset | |
| 2006–2012 | Kadima |
| 2015– | Likud |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1952-12-14)14 December 1952 (age 72) Ashkelon, Israel |
Abraham Moshe "Avi" Dichter (Hebrew:אַבְרָהָם (אָבִי) מֹשֶׁה דִיכְטֶר,IPA:[ˈaviˈdiχteʁ]; born 14 December 1952)[1] is an Israeli politician currently serving as theMinister of Agriculture and Rural Development.[1] A formerMinister of Internal Security andShin Bet director, he resigned from theKnesset and leftKadima in August 2012 in order to becomeMinister of Home Front Defense, a position he vacated in March 2013.
Avraham (Avi) Dichter was born inAshkelon. His parents wereHolocaust survivors fromPoland. As an adolescent, he joined theHashomer Hatzair youth movement. After graduating high school, he served in an elite unit of theIsrael Defense Forces,Sayeret Matkal, under then CommanderEhud Barak. Upon completing his military service, Dichter joinedShin Bet, Israel's internal security service. In 1986, he earned a BA inSocial Science fromBar-Ilan University, inRamat Gan. He also has an MBA fromTel Aviv University.
In 1973, he married Ilana Wallerstein, a teacher and artist who he had met in high school. They have three children.
Dichter began his career in Shin Bet as asky marshal for the Israeli airlineEl Al. After becoming proficient inArabic and completing field intelligence courses, he began working in the Shin Bet's Southern District, specifically theGaza Strip. In 1992, he was appointed director for the region. Aiming to improve the Shin Bet's protection capabilities, Dichter was appointed Director of the Security and Protection Division. In 1999, he became Deputy Director ofShin Bet. In 2000, he was promoted to director.
During his tenure, thePalestinians launched theSecond Intifada. Under Dichter's leadership, Shin Bet changed itsmodus operandi and restructured its mission and duties to serve at the forefront of Israel's security andcounter-terrorism efforts. The organisation spearheadedcounter-insurgency and intelligence operations deep inside theWest Bank and the Gaza Strip, thereby reducing the number of attacks against Israel.
In September 2005, Dichter left office and became a research fellow at theBrookings Institution inWashington, D.C. Several months later, he returned toIsrael and announced his foray into politics with the newly establishedKadima. He was elected to theKnesset on the party's list in 2006, and on 4 May that year was sworn in as theMinister of Internal Security. In this role, he oversaw Israel'slaw enforcement system including Israel's Police Force and Prison Service.
As Minister of Public Security, Dichter made several reforms in the fields under the auspices of the ministry. These included budgetary and organizational reform, the building of aWitness Protection Program, and the formation of a national crime fighting unit (Lahav 433) similar to the United States'FBI. In 2007, Dichter canceled a trip to theUnited Kingdom over concerns that he would be arrested onwar crimes charges for his role in the assassination ofSalah Shehade.[2]
AfterEhud Olmert resigned as party leader, Dichter entered theleadership election. However, he came fourth with only 6.5% of the vote.[3] He retained his seat in the 2009 elections after being placed ninth on the party's list, but lost his cabinet portfolio as theLikud-led coalition formed the government.
InMatar v. Dichter, theCenter for Constitutional Rights filed a federalclass action lawsuit against Dichter on behalf of the Palestinians killed or injured in a 2002 "targeted killing" air strike in Gaza; charging him withextrajudicial killing,war crimes and other grosshuman rights violations. On 16 April 2009, theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit dismissed the case citing Dichter'simmunity under theForeign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA).[4]
In March 2009, Dichter banned a series ofPalestinian Authority-sponsored events billed as the2009 Arab Capital of Culture planned forJerusalem,Nazareth and other parts of the country. Dichter said they violated the Israeli–Palestinian treaty barring PA events on the territory of Israel. Nazareth MayorRamiz Jaraisy criticized the move asanti-Arab.[5] Eight events were cancelled and twenty organizers and participants were detained.[6]
On 3 August 2011, Dichter and 39 otherKnesset members signed the proposedBasic Law proposal: Israel as the Nation-State of the Jewish People.[7]
In August 2012, he announced that he was leaving the Knesset and joining the Israeli cabinet to replace Home Front Defense MinisterMatan Vilnai, who resigned to become Israel's ambassador toChina. Dichter was replaced by Kadima'sAhmed Dabbah.[8][9]
In November 2012, duringOperation Pillar of Defense, Dichter said: "We have no other choice; Israel must perform a reformatting of Gaza, and rearrange it, as we did inJudea andSamaria duringOperation Defensive Shield."[10] Dichter's call has been echoed in the Israeli press, albeit being bashed by critics of Israel's policy.[11]
Dichter featured in the 2012 documentary filmThe Gatekeepers and discussed the main events of his tenure inShin Bet.
In March 2013,Playboy magazine published its first version inHebrew featuring an interview with Avi Dichter.[12][13][14]
Upon the Likud's return to power in late 2022, Dichter was appointed Agriculture Minister. He called for the government'sproposed judicial reforms to be frozen due towidespread protests but he said he would still vote for the proposals.[15]
During an interview withChannel 12 in November 2023, Dichter endorsed theforced displacement of civilians from the northern Gaza Strip while discussing the ongoingGaza war.[16][17][18] When asked if images of the displacement of civilians were comparable to images of theNakba, he said "We are now rolling out the Gaza Nakba. From an operational point of view, there is no way to wage a war – as the IDF seeks to do in Gaza – with masses between the tanks and the soldiers." When asked again he reiterated, "Gaza Nakba 2023. That’s how it’ll end." He later said that he did not know whether the residents of Gaza City would be allowed to return.[19] His comments were met with criticism internationally,[20][21] along with criticism from Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu the following day and the attorney general to the Israeli government,Gali Baharav-Miara who stated that his comments could be interpreted as a war crime.[22]
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Heads of theShin Bet  | ||
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