The Democrats party and its chairman, Yair Golan, petitioned the High Court of Justice on Tuesday to compel Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) chief David Zini and the government to provide him with state protection, the faction announced Wednesday.
The move comes amid heightened tensions and security threats ahead of the October 27 election. The petition says Golan remains without protection by any state body despite dozens of explicit threats to kill him or harm his family.
The petitioners asked the court to order the government and Shin Bet to provide Golan with immediate protection before the state responds to the case, keep that protection in place until the petition is decided, and hold an urgent hearing. They also asked the court to order the state to submit a preliminary response within 72 hours.
The party had warned that it would seek legal action after three written requests went unanswered. Two were addressed to the chairman of the Central Elections Committee and copied to security and legal officials, while the third was sent directly to Zini on September 22, with a response requested by September 27, according to the petition.
Public advisory committeee recommened Shin Bet security for Eisenkot
It said Israel Police had raised Golan’s risk level to 4 on a six-point scale, which it described as high and identical to the rating given to another opposition party leader, Yashar chairman Gadi Eisenkot.
A public advisory committee recommended in late August that Eisenkot receive Shin Bet protection until the election but did not recommend protection for Golan. The Democrats accused the committee at the time of acting on political considerations.
The petition says a decision was made on Sunday to provide Eisenkot with protection. His team nevertheless confirmed to The Jerusalem Post that he had not yet been assigned a security detail.
Shin Bet chief Zini recently authorized to decide security for party leaders
Earlier this month, the Ministerial Committee for Shin Bet Affairs authorized Zini to determine the security arrangements required for party leaders who do not hold public office and are not otherwise entitled to state protection, until the next Knesset is sworn in.
The petition includes screenshots of posts calling for Golan to be shot or hanged and threatening members of his family. It also says his name appeared in a death-threat letter attached to a brick thrown at Channel 12’s news studios on July 27, and that he was the only party leader named in the letter.
Under the Shin Bet Law, the agency is responsible for protecting people designated by the government. The petition argues that protecting Golan falls at the core of the agency’s responsibility to safeguard Israel’s democratic institutions.
“A candidate who cannot appear in public without risking his life is restricted in conducting his election campaign compared with candidates who are not subject to a similar threat,” the petition states. “Harming a candidate because of his political positions during an election period is an attack on the electoral process itself.”
“We will not sit idly by while the next political murder is being planned,” the Democrats said. “We demand that the High Court intervene immediately, before it is too late.”
This is a developing story.
