Democrats threaten to sue unless Shin Bet okays guards for party head Golan

The left-wing Democrats party says it will petition the High Court of Justice if Shin Bet chief David Zini does not order state-funded security for party leader Yair Golan by September 27, amid what it says are escalating threats against the former general’s life.

In an urgent letter to Zini, the party notes that police have assessed Golan’s threat level at four out of six — the same level as Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot — but that the government’s Advisory Committee for Personal Security has so far approved protection only for Eisenkot, while delaying a decision on Golan.

“Ignoring the severity of the threats directed at the chairman of the Democrats and the concrete intelligence concerning him could lead to harm to [Golan’s] life, possibly in the near future,” the letter states, warning that “if security protection is not approved, [the party] intends to petition the High Court of Justice.”

The letter cites documented threats against Golan and his family, including calls for his murder by hanging or shooting, and notes that Golan was the sole party leader named in a threatening letter attached to a brick thrown in an overnight attack of Channel 12’s news offices in June.

The Democrats have previously accused the committee of dragging its feet and being politically motivated, noting that two of the committee’s three members are appointees of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Neither Golan nor Eisenkot is currently an MK and therefore neither automatically receives the security afforded to elected officials, so any state-funded protection must be separately approved.