In Israel, IDF Central Command chief calls for stronger coordination among security forces
In Israel, the commander of the Israel Defense Forces’ Central Command, Major General Avi Bluth, called for stronger cooperation among the police, the Shin Bet security service, Border Police and local authorities to counter terrorism and violence in the West Bank. The Jerusalem Post reports, citing a video recording of the military officer’s speech distributed on Thursday.
Coordination between security agencies
Bluth positively assessed the current cooperation between Central Command, Shin Bet, Border Police and the Israel Police. According to him, effective interagency coordination helps prevent “terror of all kinds,” ensure sovereignty, uphold the rule of law and maintain public order.
At the same time, the commander warned that isolated work by institutions or situational responses to problems reduce effectiveness on the ground. He also said that critical remarks between agencies should be discussed internally rather than publicly.
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Measures against violence
As The Jerusalem Post notes, Bluth has repeatedly called on the police, Shin Bet, local officials, the security cabinet and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to respond more actively to violence by Jewish extremists against Palestinians. On July 19, he spoke about the need for broader use of restraining orders and criticized the inability to use administrative detention against Jews involved in violence.
According to the publication, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz blocked the use of administrative detention against Jewish extremists in January 2025. On July 21, Katz told Arutz 7 that he intended to summon Bluth over allegedly overly harsh actions and also stated his intention to dismiss him. IDF Chief of the General Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir responded that decisions on dismissing senior army officials fall exclusively within his authority.
The Jerusalem Post also links increased international pressure on Israel to criticism of insufficient steps to curb violence in the West Bank. According to the newspaper, the United Kingdom and around ten other Western countries imposed sanctions this week.
