Likud Knesset member Amit Halevi revealed this week in an interview on Gadi Taub’s podcast that a security check flagged dozens of teachers appearing in Shin Bet systems with indicators of terror support. According to Halevi, information about those teachers was destroyed on orders from Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara.
2+During the interview, Halevi detailed the initiative he pushed with the security establishment: “I said take all the ID numbers of the teachers—that’s over 200,000—take the Shin Bet files, do a matching, just on ID numbers, and see who pops up.”
According to Halevi, the attorney general initially opposed the move. “What do you mean do this, where’s the privacy protection law?” Halevi quoted her position, but added that she ultimately agreed and the check was carried out.
2+The cross-check between Education Ministry data and Shin Bet databases turned up alarming findings, according to the lawmaker: “Dozens of teachers popped up. Dozens. Popped up with an indicator in the Shin Bet.” Halevi emphasized the severity of the matter and argued it represents a fundamental danger: “This is a ticking time bomb. This is the infrastructure, and we’re dismissing the infrastructure because we’re not identifying the enemy correctly—the concept of the enemy is wrong.”
When Halevi asked how the Shin Bet acted on those teachers who were identified, he says a Shin Bet representative made clear the information was destroyed according to instructions they received: “He says Miara gave us approval to do this check, on condition that we shred it afterward.”
2+The lawmaker expressed shock at the response he received and recounted the conversation with the Shin Bet representative: “I said, you shredded it? He says, I shredded it. I said, you know there are fifty terror supporters, who are cultivating terrorists in the State of Israel, and you shredded it? What is this thing?”