Ex-Shin Bet officials said to warn Zini wouldn’t uphold rule of law in clash with courts

Over 260 former Shin Bet officials have reportedly urged the government appointments committee to disqualify Maj. Gen. David Zini as the next head of the security agency, warning that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s choice for the job may harm the balance between Israel’s security and upholding democratic values if appointed.

In a letter cited by Channel 12 news, officials warned the Senior Appointments Advisory Committee that Zini would not uphold the rule of law in a potential clash between the High Court of Justice and the government, citing past remarks by Zini on the country’s judiciary.

As head of the Shin Bet, Zini “may cause harm to the balance between security needs and the preservation of the democratic values of the State of Israel,” the officials said.

“The head of the Shin Bet is obligated to be loyal to the public and does not have personal loyalty to the appointing minister or to any figure from the political echelon, and, of course, to set an example and be a role model in his conduct in relation to the laws of the country and state institutions,” the reported letter read.

“Each and every one of these three matters, to the extent that it proves to be substantiated, is a reason to disqualify Zini’s candidacy for the position,” the officials wrote. “The Shin Bet is the most important organization for maintaining Israel’s strength, both in terms of security and democracy, and harming this delicate fabric could cause enormous damage to the State of Israel.”

Zini is a controversial figure with self-described “messianic” views. He has also said during private discussions with former senior security officials that “the judicial system is a dictatorship that rules the State of Israel.” According to reports, several officials in the Shin Bet have threatened to resign if he takes over the agency.

Zini until recently served as head of the IDF Training Command and General Staff Corps. He has also worked on the effort to draft ultra-Orthodox soldiers to the military. He was dismissed from the army several months ago after going behind IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir’s back to discuss the Shin Bet appointment with Netanyahu.

Netanyahu put forward Zini’s name on Thursday to the Senior Appointments Advisory Committee, led by former Supreme Court president Asher Grunis. Zini was nominated by the prime minister as head of the agency in May, though the appointment has been fraught from the start, as the prime minister’s sacking of former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar was itself wrapped up in contention.

Bar had been dismissed by cabinet vote on March 21 based on Netanyahu’s assertion that he had lost confidence in Bar’s ability to do the job in the wake of the October 7 onslaught. He has since been replaced by his former deputy, known as “Shin,” in an interim capacity as head of the secretive security agency, until Zini or someone else is formally appointed to the post.

Government watchdog groups petitioned the High Court against the controversial decision to fire Bar, alleging that he had been dismissed due to his defiance of the prime minister on several key issues, and not for professional considerations.

The High Court ruled in May that Netanyahu had acted unlawfully in recommending to the cabinet that Bar be fired, stating that the Shin Bet investigations into the prime minister’s close aides in the “Qatargate” and leaked documents scandals meant he had a conflict of interest in the decision and should not have been involved. The court’s further deliberations were curtailed, however, when Bar resigned in mid-June.

The debate over the Shin Bet appointment has aroused huge public controversy, with opponents of the government claiming Netanyahu was trying to suppress the agency’s investigations of his advisers, while the coalition and its supporters have contended that the attorney general and the court were overstepping and trying to replace the elected government and its authority.