Shin Bet’s investigation of election interference founders amid ongoing controversy

The investigation into alleged widespread foreign interference into the elections continues to stall amid significant differences of opinion between the Shin Bet on the one hand, and the police and the Attorney General on the other hand.

According to several Israeli media reports this week, Shin Bet chief David Zini continues to see the case as a potentially far-reaching security matter.

The agency currently estimates that funds amounting to millions of shekels—but not “hundreds of millions”, as had been reported earlier—were transferred to Arab Israeli parties for the purpose of disrupting the election, i24 News reported Monday.

However, police and AG reportedly see it as a criminal affair at best and have rejected Zini’s request to interrogate several high-ranking Arab politicians “under caution”, meaning they would be questioned as suspects in the case.

The affair continues to have political reverberations as representatives of the outgoing government continue to allege the elections were “stolen,” while the opposition parties accuse them of trying to exploit the investigation to discredit the election results and stall the formation of a new government.

The Likud party is preparing to issue an appeal against either parts of, or the entire results of the elections, based on allegations that Arab parties boosted voter turnout in an illegal manner, according to the Times of Israel.

Channel 12 News reported that a preliminary assessment by the police, which investigates alongside the domestic intelligence agency Shin Bet, found no security offenses and only few criminal offenses.

The police is currently preparing an assessment for Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, who will decide whether to continue the investigation, narrow its scope or close it, according to the report.

Police assess that the evidence needed to question the Arab politicians and confidantes that were named as suspects in the case is too weak to bring them in for interrogations. The police reportedly sees the case as likely to be narrowed or closed soon.

A senior law enforcement told Haaretz that the case is “certainly not a security matter, and it’s highly doubtful that it is criminal.”

On the other side, Zini continues to see the suspicions as a significant security threat, seeks an expansion of the investigation and has requested the authorization to use additional tools.

His assessment is that the investigation will not be closed “anytime soon,” according to i24. Zini reportedly also requested to add Yousef Jabareen, chairman of the Joint List, to the list of leaders he wants to question under caution.

This also includes Ahmad Tibi, chairman of Ta’al; Sami Abu Shehadeh, chairman of Balad; Mansour Abbas, chairman of Ra’am; and the outgoing Hadash chairman, Ayman Odeh.

Odeh is the only leader for whom the AG agreed there was reasonable suspicion that warranted an interrogation.

However, Baharav-Miara on Sunday reiterated that she didn’t see the investigation as posing a danger to the election outcome.

“I am not aware of any basis that could, even remotely, influence the election results or substantiate a claim of influence capable of altering the outcome,” Baharav-Miara said Sunday night.

“When an evidentiary basis exists, those who need to be questioned will be questioned. This is not a matter of right or left. It is not a matter of Jew or Arab. The decision whether to investigate an individual is a professional, objective, and equitable one. That is how it has been, and that is how it will continue to be,” she continued.