Levin says government will form inquiry into alleged illicit police use of spyware

Justice Minister Yariv Levin announces that he will set up an official commission of inquiry that will probe the alleged illicit use of cyber-surveillance tools and spyware by law enforcement bodies against citizens, including the deployment by police of the powerful, Israeli-made Pegasus tool that enables access to cells phones, including covertly listening in on conversations.

The commission will have investigative powers “to review the conduct of the police, the State Attorney’s office and their supervisory systems, in all matters relating to the procurement, monitoring and collection of information using cybernetics tools against citizens and office holders,” Levin’s office says in a press announcement.

The intent, according to the statement, is to implement “comprehensive regulation and provide a normative infrastructure for the use of advanced technological tools” to shore up public trust in law enforcement following the 2022 Pegasus affair, while balancing “the need to protect the right to privacy on the one hand, and to give enforcement agencies effective tools to fight crime and corruption on the other hand.”

Levin says Israeli citizens are “entitled to privacy and to the fact that any investigative procedure will be conducted in accordance with the law, while respecting the rights” of suspects under interrogation, witnesses and others.

The commission will be headed by retired judge Moshe Drori, a former vice president of the Jerusalem District Court and a vocal critic of the State Attorney’s Office.

Drori is a staunch supporter of the government’s plan to overhaul the justice system and previously voiced strong criticism of former attorney general Avichai Mandelblit.