Surveillance on Ben Gvir: Classified Files Reveal Secret Domestic Monitoring of Cabinet Ministers
A senior internal security official has been arrested for allegedly leaking highly sensitive documents that expose domestic surveillance operations against Cabinet Minister Itamar Ben Gvir. The detained officer claims the disclosures were necessary to expose political manipulation surrounding the official investigation into the October 7 intelligence failures.
A senior official within the internal security services, holding a rank equivalent to a lieutenant colonel, was arrested on the eve of Passover under suspicion of leaking highly classified documents to government ministers and prominent journalists. The ongoing investigation has exposed a complex legal and political battle, with the detained officer insisting he acted purely as a whistleblower to expose systemic institutional corruption. The leaked materials suggest that high ranking intelligence directors and legal advisors directed field agents to gather intelligence on the activities of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
According to the interrogation transcripts, the officer discovered a sensitive internal file titled "Request for Information Consolidation Regarding the Minister's Involvement in Directing Field Police Operations." The internal inquiry had been initiated following intense political friction surrounding the minister's presence at the Temple Mount during national days of mourning. The suspect testified that utilizing counter terrorism field personnel to track elected political figures represents a severe violation of democratic checks and balances.
The officer explained to investigators that he purposely removed all specific names, operational codes, and classified intelligence markers from the documents before sharing them with politicians and journalists. He maintained that this process rendered the information safe for public discussion, hoping the disclosure would prompt an immediate parliamentary review within the Knesset to correct the administrative overreach.
The second, equally volatile aspect of the investigation involves the officer's claims regarding the official internal investigation into the catastrophic intelligence failures of October 7. The suspect asserted that after reading the complete, one-hundred-page internal report from the southern sector, he discovered massive discrepancies when comparing it to the sanitized summaries distributed to the general public. He claimed the public messages were intentionally manipulated to deflect institutional accountability onto the civilian government.
The suspect stated that the official public narrative claimed the agency failed to realize Hamas was no longer deterred, yet the actual internal document explicitly stated that the southern branch identified a weakened and deterred Hamas in Gaza, reinforcing the pre-existing concept. Furthermore, he noted that while public statements blamed the political echelon for economic policies and worker permits, internal policy files showed that the security service itself had repeatedly recommended those exact economic concessions to stabilize the region.
Defense attorneys representing the detained officer have fiercely criticized the harsh methods used during his detention, including denying access to counsel and maintaining isolation during national holidays. The legal team argued that their client served the nation honorably for decades and merely sought to deliver crucial truths to the public without endangering state security.
Concurrently, the Attorney General's office has completely rejected the officer's claims, characterizing them as total nonsense. The official response stated that the agency merely requested relevant operational documents to address an ongoing High Court petition regarding potential interference in police matters. The department emphasized that the security service was never asked to spy on or collect intelligence against the minister, declaring any claims to the contrary to be entirely false.
