Court ruling10/18/2026

Chairman of the Central Elections Committee Orders Changes to Posts Featuring Photos of Ben Gvir

The Chairman of the Central Elections Committee, Justice Noam Sohlberg, ordered changes to three Facebook posts by the Ministry of National Security. Photos of Minister Itamar Ben Gvir must be removed insofar as they make him the central figure in the posts.

Key facts

•Body: Central Elections Committee
•Chairman: Justice Noam Sohlberg
•Publication date: 18 October 2026
•Three Facebook posts were affected
•Costs: 2,500 shekels
•The case number was not specified in the original source

What Happened

The decision concerns three posts on the official Facebook account of the Ministry of National Security. Justice Noam Sohlberg required the removal of additional photos of Minister Itamar Ben Gvir so that the ministry’s posts would not focus on him.

Position of the Chairman of the Central Elections Committee

Sohlberg clarified that there is no blanket ban on publishing photos of ministers. However, according to the position presented in the original source, a minister may not become the central figure in an official publication by a government ministry.

Costs

The Ministry of National Security was ordered to pay legal costs of 2,500 shekels. The case number, the parties to the proceeding, and the statutory provision on which the decision was based were not specified in the original source.

What this means for you

Government ministries may publish photos of ministers, but such materials must not become personal promotion of the officeholder. For ordinary citizens, this means that official government ministry pages are subject to restrictions concerning how politicians are presented on them, particularly in an election context.

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