Police preparations for Tuesday's Israeli parliamentary election extend beyond voting to possible unrest after the results, with nearly 22,000 officers planned for deployment, i24NEWS reported, citing a senior police official.
The planned force is about 5,000 officers larger than at the 2022 election, according to i24NEWS. In a separate Israel Police statement, Central Elections Committee Chairman Justice Noam Sohlberg put expected election-day staffing at more than 20,000 officers.
Anadolu Agency described the election as closely contested and said disputes over the outcome could lead to unrest. The senior official told i24NEWS that preparations began three months ago and cover security at political party events, exit-poll projections, the results announcement and the following days. The official expected a mostly calm election day but said police were planning for people to gather in response to the outcome.
The police commissioner said in an Oct. 15 Israel Police statement that he had instructed officers not to express political views while serving. The election for the Knesset, Israel's parliament, is scheduled for Oct. 27, with exit-poll projections and the results announcement to follow.
