Shin Bet claims Channel 12 report endangered lives of PM, Israeli delegation, pursues legal action

The Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) demanded that legal action be taken against Channel 12 over its reporting of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the United Arab Emirates in a complaint filed with the chief military censor on Monday. 

According to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the Shin Bet considered the report a "serious censorship violation."

The Shin Bet said that the timing of the report, which came out at 9:38 p.m., endangered the "security of the prime minister, the operation, and the forces on the ground," as the prime minister's aircraft was still well outside Israel's borders. 

The plane landed about an hour later at 10:27 p.m.

The Shin Bet added that the report exposed methods of the operation which placed future operations at "a significantly higher level of risk."

The PMO said that the lives of the prime minister, his wife, and the delegation, including the National Security Council head, Maj. Gen. Guy Markizano, the military secretary, the head of the Shin Bet security division, as well as the aircrew and the security team were all endangered.

Mossad assessment finds leak 'serious security threat'

Additionally, a Mossad assessment found that the leak "constituted a serious security threat to the security of the prime minister and the delegation." 

The Mossad requested that the publication be marked as a serious incident constituting damage to the security of the State of Israel.