From the Liveblog of
Saturday, July 2, 2022
Lapid to sleep at ‘secure’ apartment near PM’s residence, amid construction work
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleEmanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
Prime Minister Yair Lapid and his wife Lihi will spend the night at a “secure” apartment on Balfour Street in Jerusalem, as the nearby prime minister’s official residence is undergoing renovations to upgrade its security.
The Shin Bet security agency’s head, Ronen Bar, tells Lapid during a meeting that “most of the infrastructure shortcomings detailed in the State Comptroller’s report” have yet to be fixed, according to a statement from the PMO.
“It was agreed that [the Shin Bet] would examine the fastest course of action in order to expedite the security and infrastructure renovation at the Balfour residence,” it says.
Lapid will meanwhile stay at the Shin Bet’s “secure compound” — which is an apartment that has served as a barracks for Shin Bet guards, and before that was used by the Guatemalan embassy.
The Shin Bet will also install security measures at Lapid’s private Tel Aviv home.
Bar says they will be “necessary and minimal,” so as to not disrupt the routine of Lapid’s neighbors.
To cut costs, existing security measures will be transferred from other areas, Bar says to Lapid, according to the PMO statement.
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— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) July 2, 2022
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