The appointment of IDF Maj.-Gen. David Zini as the new head of the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is impossible, as Netanyahu is in a conflict of interests, due to the agency’s investigation of Qatari connections to his confidantes, Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara wrote in a letter on Monday.
She added that her legal opinion is based on the High Court of Justice ruling issued on the matter last week, along with the evidence presented.
“Your appointment of Zini, which was made under a conflict of interest, and with a complete disregard for the legal instructions attached, is null and illegal,” she wrote.
The HCJ ruling, issued last week, stated that Netanyahu stands in a conflict of interest when it comes to this appointment and that he should not have been involved in it at all. Baharav-Miara wrote to the prime minister soon after, advising him of the same.
One day later, on Thursday, reports emerged of Zini’s appointment. Deputy Attorney-General Gil Limon noted in a legal opinion penned on Monday that the implication of the ruling is that Netanyahu is not to deal, directly or indirectly, with any part of the process still to come, at least until the agency’s investigations are completed.
The most sound and logical next step is to transfer the responsibility to a different minister, who will then present the suggested appointment to the government, Limon wrote.
The fear is that this minister would be used as the “long arm” of Netanyahu, and as such, go against the ruling and make the appointment political. Limon wrote that there are two legal implications to this: first, that the search process for a candidate begin anew from scratch so as to ensure it is above suspicion; second, that it is unlikely that Zini’s appointment is sound, given the widespread support it has in the coalition.
According to Limon, the integrity of Zini’s appointment by any other minister had possibly been compromised after Government Secretary Yossi Fuchs read out a statement at the government’s meeting on Monday saying that it “welcomed the prime minister’s intention to appoint Major General David Zini as the head of the Shin Bet.”
In his statement, Fuchs also “calls on all relevant parties to remove obstacles and expedite the process for approving this appointment, which is essential for Israel’s security,” and “emphasizes the importance of appointing a permanent Shin Bet chief during wartime and urges against settling for an interim appointment.”
The statement indicated that no government minister would be able to argue they had chosen Zini after a credible appointment procedure, Limon reasoned.
'Process should be started from scratch'
Limon wrote that the process should be started from scratch and that the designated minister should seek out the appointments himself, without any foreign input, so as to keep the process clean. He added that the whole affair should be accompanied by the legal advisory and that every appointment should come with a clear and detailed explanation as to why this person is a good fit.
This information would be presented to the Advisory Committee on Senior Civil Service Appointments, which would examine the appointment thoroughly.
“Given the current security situation, it is paramount to appoint an intelligence chief as soon as possible – before Ronen Bar leaves on June 15. An appointment made while in a conflict of interest harms this objective,” he wrote.
Two cases of alleged Qatari influence are under investigation
The Shin Bet, along with Israel Police, is investigating two cases of alleged Qatari influences on close confidants of the prime minister. Netanyahu aide Yonatan Urich and former Prime Minister’s Office military spokesman Eli Feldstein were investigated for Qatari ties made in efforts by the Gulf state to improve its image. Limon wrote that Bar was personally involved in these investigations.
In the Qatargate case, allegedly, news tips given to journalists were presented as being sourced from intelligence figures when, in reality, they were sourced in Qatar. This was reportedly done to boost Qatar’s image in its mediator role in the Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal agreements and to downplay Egypt’s role.Qatar has denied any action of the sort.
In the other case, the “leaked documents affair,” Feldstein was investigated for allegedly leaking classified military documents to the German daily Bild after they were denied publication by the Israeli military censor. The documents were eventually published, allegedly to sway public opinion on the hostage negotiations.
Quoting from the ruling, Limon wrote that Netanyahu effectively admitted his conflict of interest in this case by calling the investigations “baseless” and “fake.” The court stood strong on the connection between the relatively sudden push to fire Bar and the Qatari investigations.