Israeli Transport Ministry Admits Security Chief Worked Abroad Without Permission
Translated & summarized from Vesty by baba
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Transport Ministry confirms security chief worked abroad without permission.
- Avri Cohen represented airlines on security matters in foreign airports.
- Ministry previously claimed Cohen had authorization, but later retracted.
- The Civil Service Commission never issued the required permit.
- The issue surfaced after a foiled plane hijacking attempt.
Israel's Ministry of Transport acknowledged on Monday, October 5, that Avri Cohen, the head of its Security, Cyber and Emergency Situations Directorate, engaged in additional employment without the required authorization. He has been instructed to cease this activity. This admission contradicts the ministry's earlier stance, which had claimed Cohen had received permission for private work before assuming his current role.
According to a report by Haaretz, Cohen represented Israeli airlines on security matters at foreign airports concurrently with his ministry position, receiving separate payment for this work. His directorate is responsible for overseeing the security of foreign flights entering or transiting Israeli airspace. The ministry revised its statement after Calcalist discovered that the Civil Service Commission had not issued Cohen permission for this secondary employment.
An examination of regulations revealed that only the commission can approve such additional work for an official at Cohen's level. The ministry confirmed that it had not submitted the relevant application to the commission, thus no permission was granted. The ministry emphasized that the responsibility to request and obtain such permission before commencing additional work lies with the employee.
Upon learning of Cohen's outside employment, the ministry stated it immediately ordered him to stop until he obtained proper authorization. The revelations about Cohen's outside earnings emerged following the foiling of an attempted hijacking of a Flydubai plane on September 30, 2026, en route from the UAE to Israel. The incident highlighted deficiencies in the directorate's work, as it had insisted on taking over the vetting of foreign flight crews despite lacking sufficient staff for the task.
A former senior official from the Civil Service Commission noted that unauthorized outside work is not uncommon among civil servants, including those in leadership positions.
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