Key facts
- Tzachi Eliyahu, described as a "Kahanist" figure, is poised to enter the Israeli parliament.
- Eliyahu has a tattoo of the banned Kach movement, founded by Rabbi Meir Kahane.
- The Kach movement was banned in Israel and designated a terrorist organization.
- Eliyahu secured eighth place on the Otzma Yehudit party list, led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
- Recent polls project Otzma Yehudit will win eight to 10 Knesset seats.
- Eliyahu previously posed for a photograph with Elor Azaria, a soldier convicted of manslaughter for killing a wounded Palestinian man.
Tzachi Eliyahu, a figure described as a "Kahanist" with ties to the banned Kach movement, is on track to enter the Israeli parliament, the Knesset. He has secured the eighth position on the party list of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir's Otzma Yehudit party, ahead of the elections scheduled for October 27.
Eliyahu is known for having a tattoo of the Kach movement on his arm. Founded by radical Jewish supremacist Rabbi Meir Kahane, Kach was banned in Israel and designated a terrorist organization due to its racist policies towards Palestinians, including calls for their expulsion. The movement was outlawed in 1994 following a massacre by a Kach member at a mosque in Hebron.
In 2023, Ben Gvir reportedly blocked Eliyahu from entering the Knesset after the resignation of Avi Maoz, chairman of the Noam party. A political source described Eliyahu as belonging to "the previous generation of Otzma Yehudit" and "that kind of Kahanist." Ben Gvir himself has a conviction for supporting Kach.
With Otzma Yehudit projected to win eight to 10 seats in the upcoming elections, Eliyahu's placement on the list makes his entry into parliament highly probable. Ben Gvir has praised the party's list as "the most diverse in Israel" and emphasized the "love for the people of Israel" among its members. Otzma Yehudit has also prioritized the "voluntary emigration" of Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank, a term widely seen as a euphemism for forced displacement.
Eliyahu has also been linked to Elor Azaria, a former Israeli soldier convicted of manslaughter for shooting and killing a wounded, unarmed Palestinian man in Hebron in 2016. Eliyahu described Azaria as understanding that "you eliminate a terrorist at the scene." Additionally, Eliyahu has been involved in incidents of violence against anti-government protesters and called for a journalist to be confronted at her home.