Almog Cohen (politician)

Almog Cohen ( Hebrew : אלמוג כהן ; born 12 January 1988 ) is an Israeli far-right politician, former police officer, and militia founder from the city of Beersheba in the Negev region. He served as a member of the Knesset for Otzma Yehudit from 2022 until 2025. He has served as a regional coordinator for the party. Owing to his police and militia background, Cohen acquired nicknames including "the sheriff" and "the warrior from the Negev" within the party. Prior to his political career, Cohen organized a militia force in the Negev region, which was created to "fight crime among Bedouins ." Following his entry into politics, Cohen was accused of police brutality by a Negev Bedouin family after he posted a photo showing himself involved in a 2013 arrest. Ahead of the 2022 Israeli legislative election , Cohen removed wide traces of his digital footprint , including calls to "wash the streets of Gaza with blood". In 2022, he claimed that the alleged 2021 rape by a Negev Bedouin of a 10-year-old Jewish girl in her home is what made him become an activist. After entering the Knesset following the 2022 election, Cohen briefly served on the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee before being removed by party leader Itamar Ben-Gvir over insubordination. In January 2023, Cohen was suspended from Twitter for his calls to "keep killing them" following a raid in the Jenin refugee camp that led to the deaths of nine Palestinians. In February 2023, Cohen broadcast a rant in the Knesset in which he compared Arab MKs to animals; he was subsequently reprimanded by the Knesset's ethics panel. The Times of Israel . 27 January 2023 . Far-right lawmaker Almog Cohen called for supporters of the judicial overhaul to join a counterprotest on Monday evening outside the Parliament building in Jerusalem, but echoed calls for nonviolence. The Jerusalem Post . 2 November 2022 . The Times of Israel . 15 February 2021 .