Shin Bet agent arrested for leaking to minister and reporters

An investigation was opened following a leaked document to Channel 12 commentator Amit Segal, which revealed an order by Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar to investigate the spread of Kahanism on the police under Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

The suspect, a member of the Shin Bet in the reserves, was arrested and described as a "security detainee," and as a result, he was denied the opportunity to meet with a lawyer for eight days, in a step defined as an interrogation by unusual means.

The minister whose name has been linked to the affair, to whom documents were also apparently leaked, is Minister Amichai Shikli, along with a leak to journalists Amit Segal and Shirit Avitan.

The ISA agent's attorneys are attorneys Uri Korb and Sivan Russo. During his interrogation, he admitted to leaking. Tomorrow (Wednesday) he will be brought back for a hearing on extending his detention.

According to the official announcement, last Wednesday (9 April 2025), a suspect, a member of the Israel Security Agency, was arrested on suspicion of committing security offenses.

The investigation had been under a court-issued gag order since April 6, but that secrecy began to unravel after political and media pressure mounted. On Monday, Likud MK Tally Gotliv openly defied the order by disclosing key details of the case in a post on X. Gotliv accused authorities of using the gag order not to protect national security, but to shield Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar from public scrutiny.

This is not Gotliv’s first such transgression. Since entering the Knesset in late 2022, she has repeatedly breached gag orders, claiming parliamentary immunity grants her the right to do so. She is currently facing a criminal investigation for a 2023 disclosure in which she revealed that the husband of Prof. Shikma Bressler—a prominent leader in the protest movement against the government’s judicial overhaul—was employed by the Shin Bet.