Police to question former Shin Bet chief Argaman for alleged threats against PM
Summons comes after ex-security chief said he might reveal compromising information about Netanyahu, leading the premier to accuse him of blackmail
The Israel Police decided on Sunday to summon former Shin Bet chief Nadav Argaman for questioning, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu filed a police complaint last week accusing him of blackmail.
Netanyahu made the complaint after Argaman threatened to reveal compromising information about the prime minister during a TV interview.
“It’s quite clear that I have a great deal of knowledge, which I can put to use… but I’m currently keeping everything that happened between myself and the prime minister” out of the public sphere, Argaman said during an interview aired on Channel 12 news Thursday night.
However, “if the State of Israel or if I conclude that the prime minister has decided that he is going to act in contradiction to the law, then I will not have a choice and I will say everything I know and have refrained from saying until today,” he added.
Netanyahu responded by accusing Argaman of blackmail and filing a complaint with police.
In a letter sent to Israel Police Chief Daniel Levy, the prime minister urged the opening of an investigation against Argaman who “crossed all red lines” when he chose to “threaten and blackmail a sitting prime minister with the methods and ways of crime organizations,” acting like “ the mafia” and using “underworld” tactics.
Netanyahu wrote to Levy that Argaman was threatening him with “criminal use of information he gained within the framework of his role in the Shin Bet agency.”
Such action, he said, is a threat “not just to the prime minister but an absolute threat to the Israeli regime, to the rule of law and to democracy,” and its severity “goes beyond that of security offenses.”
Levy said Friday afternoon, following Netanyahu’s complaint, that he had instructed investigators “to review the comments” made by Argaman.
Accordingly, an extensive document was prepared by police investigators, Channel 12 said, and senior officials then met to discuss its contents before moving forward with the summons.
According to multiple outlets, police did not consult with the attorney general before launching the investigation, despite her desire to be kept in the loop due to Argaman’s former senior position.
The Israel Police’s decision to pursue the case came just hours before Netanyahu announced his plan to fire current Shin Bet head Ronen Bar.
Bar distanced himself on Friday from Argaman’s comments, saying he should not “use the organization’s power unnecessarily. This has not been and will not be our way.”
He added that he “disapproves of discourse that is not statesmanlike.”
During his interview on Thursday — before the attempted firing of Bar — Argaman also said he did not believe Netanyahu would make an apolitical decision in choosing the next Shin Bet chief.
“I am extremely afraid of the possibility that an appointment made by this government, an appointment made by this prime minister, could be a political appointment,” he said.
He also warned that firing Bar could constitute a conflict of interest, due to the ongoing Shin Bet probe into alleged ties between senior members of the Prime Minister’s Office and Qatar.
The Times of Israel Community.