Democrats Petition High Court for Security for Yair Golan Amid Threats

The Democratic Party filed a petition with Israel's High Court of Justice (Bagatz) on Tuesday, September 29, demanding that the head of the Shin Bet security agency, David Zini, and the government provide security for party leader Yair Golan. Golan's party stated that he remains without protection despite police assessing the threat level against him as high, citing dozens of "chilling threats, including murder threats." The petition includes a document detailing specific threats such as calls for Golan's execution and severe harm to him and his family. The party argues that the lack of security hinders Golan's ability to campaign effectively, calling an attack on a candidate due to political views during an election a "violation of the electoral process itself."

Also left without security is Gadi Eisenkot, the chairman of the Yachad party. The petition emphasizes that providing security for Yair Golan is a primary task of the Shin Bet.

This action follows a decision by Justice Minister Yariv Levin, who heads the ministerial committee on Shin Bet affairs, on September 13. Levin authorized the Shin Bet to independently determine security measures for civilian party leaders without existing protection. However, no decisions have been made since then, with Levin reportedly being the only minister to attend the relevant committee meeting.

Background information indicates that the security issue for opposition leaders escalated during the July-September 2026 election campaign. Initially, the Shin Bet denied security to Eisenkot and Golan, as they did not hold official state positions. The situation intensified when police recorded a sharp increase in threats, assigning both politicians an equally high, fourth-level danger rating. To resolve the impasse, on September 16, the ministerial committee granted Shin Bet chief David Zini sole authority to decide on protection for prime ministerial candidates during the election period. Shortly after this, the Shin Bet officially provided security to Gadi Eisenkot.