An operative of Israel’s Shin Bet internal security agency suspected of leaking classified information to journalists and a government minister will be released to house arrest, Israeli authorities said Wednesday.
The suspect, identified only as “A,” is accused of passing sensitive documents to journalists Amit Segal and Shirit Avitan-Cohen, as well as Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli. A court extended his detention by one day on Tuesday, but the Police Internal Investigations Department and Shin Bet said they would not seek another extension. Prosecutors will instead request that he be held under house arrest for one month.
The case centers on a sensitive internal security investigation that began several weeks ago. Authorities say the suspect is a reservist who oversees internal censorship of Shin Bet documents. According to investigators, said sensitive information revolved around a Shin Bet probe into suspected infiltration of extreme right-wing elements into the police senior staff, as well as an unedited internal memo regarding the agency's conduct before the October 7 attack.
He is accused of downloading classified materials from Shin Bet systems and transferring them to unauthorized recipients. According to investigators, the suspect did not communicate directly with the journalists but used an intermediary described as a public figure. Authorities believe he shared information with said figure on multiple occasions.
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Investigators also allege that he intended to leak documents to the wife of a protest activist under Shin Bet surveillance, reportedly out of frustration that the agency was interfering in matters he believed should fall under police jurisdiction. He ultimately changed his mind and destroyed the documents, officials said.
“This is not a case of ‘leaking’—that term does not reflect the severity of the allegations,” a representative of the Police Internal Investigations Department told the Central District Court in Lod on Monday. “A longtime member of the service violated the trust placed in him by virtue of his position, extracted classified documents, and passed them to unauthorized individuals. His actions demonstrate a complete disregard for the responsibilities entrusted to him.”