Israeli authorities are probing a multi-suspect security case involving the alleged smuggling of goods from inside Israel into the Gaza Strip, the Ashkelon Magistrate’s Court revealed on Thursday after partially lifting a sweeping gag order on the investigation.
According to Israel Police and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), the probe concerns dozens of items allegedly transferred clandestinely for financial gain. One of the suspects is a relative of Shin Bet chief David Zini, though law enforcement and the court stressed that there is no indication that the Shin Bet head himself is implicated in the alleged wrongdoing.
The decision, authored by Ashkelon Magistrate’s Court Judge Yaniv Ben Harush, partially acceded to requests by journalists and media organizations to scale back a blanket publication ban initially imposed on December 20.
At a hearing held a week later, on December 27, the court narrowed the gag order, permitting the publication of a single line: “In recent days, authorities have been investigating a wide-ranging affair involving the smuggling of goods from Israel into Gaza.”
Media pushes back against gag order
On Thursday, media outlets returned to court seeking a further reduction of the ban, arguing that continued restrictions unduly infringed on freedom of expression and press oversight, violated the principle of open justice, and were no longer proportionate given developments in the investigation.
Representatives for the media contended that as the investigation had progressed - with several suspects detained and questioned - the risk of obstruction had diminished. They further argued that police failed to provide a sufficiently concrete explanation as to how publication, including of suspects’ identities, would compromise the probe.
“The media outlet’s representative argued even more forcefully for the importance of press oversight of the investigation,” the decision states, “given the identity of one of the suspects, who is alleged to have a familial connection to a senior public figure [Zini].”
Police opposed broader publication, warning that disclosure could still harm the investigation.
Ben Harush wrote that the court identified “several weighty considerations” justifying continued restrictions, foremost among them that the investigation remains ongoing, concerns security offenses, and forms part of a multi-suspect affair, increasing the risk of interference.
At the same time, the court found countervailing factors supporting at least partial publication, citing a legitimate public interest arising from the alleged connection to a senior public figure.
The judge also noted that some media outlets had already revealed more than a “hint” of the affair, and while the judiciary cannot accept a reality in which media organizations take the law into their own hands by violating gag orders, it cannot ignore that reality.
Finally, the court warned that judicial disengagement from an increasingly dynamic media environment could foster the spread of conspiracy theories - a risk the judge said is particularly acute in this case, as such theories could damage not only Zini’s reputation, but also the intelligence agency he heads.