Israeli court halts Ben-Gvir plan to place crocodiles around Palestinian prison

An Israeli court has temporarily blocked National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s plan to install crocodiles around Ketziot Prison in southern Israel’s Negev desert, where Palestinian detainees from Gaza are being held, according to Israeli media reports on Monday.

Israeli authorities had already begun digging trenches around the section of the prison holding Palestinians detained from Gaza over alleged involvement in the events of October 7, 2023. Under the plan championed by Ben-Gvir, crocodiles would be placed inside these trenches as a security measure.

Israel’s public broadcaster reported that the Jerusalem District Court issued a temporary injunction on Sunday evening after the animal rights group Let the Animals Live filed a legal petition challenging the plan, which has the backing of the National Security Ministry and the Israel Prison Service. Judge Avraham Rubin ordered authorities to halt any action based on a decision by Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman to classify crocodiles as tended wild animals, a legal designation that would have permitted their transfer to and use at the prison facility.

According to the broadcaster, the ruling followed an administrative petition the organization filed against Silman, Ben-Gvir and the Israel Prison Service just hours earlier. The temporary order will stay in place until authorities file their formal response, which the court expects by mid August.

The dispute centers on a decision Silman made on July 15 that was designed to allow crocodiles to serve as what officials described as a deterrent and security measure inside prisons. The petition filed against the plan argues that the decision effectively strips crocodiles of protections normally applied to wild animals by removing the licensing and oversight mechanisms that would otherwise govern their care and control.

Let the Animals Live told the broadcaster that the Israel Prison Service had already started infrastructure work, including digging a canal around the prison, and said the National Security Ministry had set aside 21 million shekels, or roughly 6.9 million dollars, to fund the pilot project. The group said the decision was made without adequate legal authority and disregarded expert and legal warnings about risks to the animals themselves, to the public and to the surrounding environment.

Officials have not yet submitted the government’s formal position to the court, though a response is expected as part of the proceedings tied to the injunction request.

Representatives from Let the Animals Live and the Environmental Justice and Animal Rights Clinic at Tel Aviv University said the court’s order prevents irreversible construction work from moving forward for now and protects the animals’ welfare while they continue pursuing a permanent cancellation of the plan.

Since taking office in late 2022, Ben-Gvir has overseen a broader tightening of detention conditions for Palestinian prisoners, including measures involving food deprivation, denial of medical care, mistreatment and prolonged isolation. Palestinian and Israeli human rights organizations report that approximately 9,500 Palestinian prisoners, including women and children, are currently held in Israeli facilities under harsh conditions, with dozens reported to have died as a result of starvation, mistreatment and medical neglect.