Radical Journalist Israel Frey to Be Treated as Terrorist Inmate After Praising Deaths of IDF Soldiers
Israel Frey’s detention extended; top prison official orders security classification after antisemitic post on X
Twitter
Israel Frey, a fringe ultra-Orthodox journalist known for his radical far-left views, will remain in custody through the weekend, following a court ruling Thursday morning.
Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court approved the police request to extend Frey’s detention until July 13, as the investigation into his incitement to terror continues.
Frey was arrested earlier this week by the Tel Aviv Police fraud unit after publishing a shocking post on X in which he appeared to celebrate the deaths of five IDF soldiers killed in combat in Gaza:
“The world is better this morning, without the five young men who took part in one of humanity's cruelest crimes… This is a call to every Israeli mother: Don’t be the next one to receive her son in a coffin as a war criminal. Refuse.”
The post, which quickly drew outrage across Israeli society, was published following news of five combat deaths among Israel’s top soldiers.
Classified as a Security Prisoner
In a dramatic move, Israel Prison Service Commissioner Kobi Yaakobi, a close ally of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, ruled Thursday that Frey will be treated as a security detainee.
This means Frey will be jailed in a high-security facility, alongside convicted Palestinian terrorists.
The police confirmed that the case has been handed over to the Tel Aviv District Attorney’s Office, and the investigation is ongoing.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir stated:
"I back the decision of Israel Prison Service Commissioner Kobi Yaakobi. Anyone who incites against IDF soldiers and legitimizes spilling their blood is a security offender. And a security offender should be treated as such. Period."
According to Yossi Eli: "Yisrael Frey—who is not a journalist in any sense—wrote a statement that would have led to the immediate arrest of any Arab from East Jerusalem. Today, Israel Prison Service Commissioner Kobi Yaakobi decided to transfer him to a security prisoners' wing. He wrote something so extreme that even a terrorist would hesitate to put it in writing.
Stop attributing everything to [National Security Minister] Ben Gvir as if he’s the Pied Piper of Hamelin. There was criticism from the State Prosecutor’s Office, which approved his arrest, and the court extended his detention. In my view, all of it is justified."