Zini clashes with Shin Bet officials over need to expand tools used in elections interference case

The Shin Bet is divided over how to investigate the alleged foreign intervention in the elections, with head David Zini seeking to expand the investigation while senior officials disagree about the need to use additional methods, KAN News reported Sunday.

The Shin Bet told The Jerusalem Post that the discourse within the organization allows for a "wide range of different and diverse opinions in discussions."

They also told the Post that it doesn't comment on what is said in closed meetings.

According to the KAN report, Zini clashed with three senior officials over the need to expand the tools used during the investigation.

The officials believe that the scope of the case doesn't require the use of those tools, given the intensity of the suspicions of foreign interference.

Senior Shin Bet officials question strength of evidence

The three officials, including the head of a Shin Bet department involved in the investigation and two other senior figures, expressed opposition to Zini's approach during an internal discussion, according to the report.

Their objections come amid questions about the strength of the evidence linking Qatar to money received by a Knesset member from the Joint List, which was allegedly used by the party during the elections.

Beyond uncertainty over the source of the money, investigators have yet to establish whether the funds were actually used for illegal election-related activities.

During the discussion, the department head and the two other senior officials argued that the suspicions were limited in scope, raising doubts about whether investigators could gather sufficient evidence to establish that criminal offenses had been committed.

A law enforcement source involved in the investigation told KAN News that uncertainties surrounding the origin of the funds and the severity of the suspected offenses have created legal obstacles to approving certain investigative measures without additional evidence.

A senior Shin Bet official who participated in discussions with law enforcement authorities also told KAN that the measures proposed by Zini would require special legal authorization, which may be difficult to obtain given the limited scope of the suspicions.

Probe proceeds, results stand

The reported rift comes after Central Elections Committee chairman Justice Noam Sohlberg said on Sunday that even if the suspicions are substantiated, they do not undermine the integrity of the vote or its results as a whole. 

Zini appeared in the video statement alongside Sohlberg, Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara and acting CEC director-general Dean Livne.

Sohlberg said the suspicions concern foreign funding intended to influence the election and may involve a security dimension. The inquiry is covert, relies on classified intelligence and is being run by a joint team from the Shin Bet, police and prosecution under his supervision, he said.

The investigation will proceed in parallel with the completion of the election process, Sohlberg added, and official results will be submitted to President Isaac Herzog as scheduled on Wednesday, when consultations on forming the next government begin.

Yonah Jeremy Bob and Sarah Ben-Nun contributed to this report.