Two corruption cases relating to the Gaza war shook Israel on Wednesday after prosecutors began investigating a brother of the country's domestic intelligence chief for smuggling goods into Palestinian territory, while a mayor was arrested for allegedly taking money meant for citizens struggling in a war zone.
Prosecutors filed charges against 12 people, including soldiers, accused of smuggling goods into Gaza. Those include dual use items – a restricted category that the military says could be used by armed groups against Israel. The charges against the suspects include fraud, financing terrorist activity and assisting an enemy during wartime.
Another three suspects, including Bezalel Zini, brother of Shin Bet chief David Zini, are being questioned in connection with smuggling of cigarettes into the strip.
Mr Zini, a reservist, is expected to face charges of assisting the enemy during wartime – a major embarrassment for his brother, who was recently appointed head of the domestic intelligence agency despite objections that he is a “messianic” member of the far right.
A joint Shin Bet and police statement released on Wednesday said the arrests were made after intelligence suggested that “various elements, including Israeli citizens, were taking advantage of the new reality on the ground that began with the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas and the entry of large-scale humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, in order to smuggle goods prohibited from entering the Gaza Strip, in various ways”.
Separately, Tomer Glam, the mayor of Ashkelon, is suspected of taking donations meant to assist residents of the southern port city, which was hit by rockets launched from Gaza. He is under house arrest. Other suspects in the case include local officials and businesspeople. Police said funds were taken from a community fund holding millions of shekels in donations.
Mr Glam was arrested in the southern city of Eilat, where he was reportedly attending a conference. Shortly before his arrest, he is understood to have told the audience: “My mother always told me, ‘When the money is yours, do what you want with it. With public funds, act with great responsibility.’”
The scandals come as Israel is under scrutiny for its commitment to the postwar Gaza framework, which was loosely set out by US President Donald Trump towards the end of last year. As part of the plan, Israel reopened the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza this week despite significant opposition within the country.
Although Israel agreed to allow only a small number of Palestinians to cross each day, there are fears the arrangement might not last. Goods also remain barred from entry, despite severe shortages in the strip.
In mid-January, The National reported that an opaque operation to bring so-called dual-use items into Gaza was generating millions of dollars on the black market.
The vast markups on these goods, a result of little understood “co-ordination fees”, were pricing the majority of civilians in Gaza out of life-saving equipment, raising alarm among international officials working on reconstruction, said diplomatic and humanitarian sources.
Cogat, the Israeli Ministry of Defence agency with responsibility for civilian policy in the occupied West Bank, said at the time of the investigation: “In order to prevent the infiltration of terrorist elements into the aid entry mechanism, a new mechanism for the entry of goods via the private sector in Gaza will be implemented in a gradual and controlled manner.”
Testimony gathered by The National revealed lorries with Israeli number plates were entering Gaza carrying restricted items in a process co-ordinated with the Israeli military that cost a small number of Israeli-approved Gazan importers millions of dollars per shipment in “co-ordination fees”.
