Israeli President Isaac Herzog delivered an address on Sunday at the farewell event for Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai. "We are in the middle of a challenging and complex period, which imposes a huge responsibility on you and all police officers. I must clarify and emphasize: The police do not belong and will not belong to anyone. The police do not belong to one political party or another," Herzog declared. According to him, "The police must be all of ours. We the citizens must be their partners and they must be all of our partners - in the efforts to maintain a functioning democratic society that follows the rule of law. "I ask from all elected officials - leave the police out of politics. The demands and expectations of the Israeli public must stand before us. A stately police force, which operates under the auspices of the law, and only the law, is a critical principle which we can not compromise on," he concluded. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not attend the event, while National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir was not invited.
