Two Senior Transport Ministry Officials Under Criminal Investigation Over Flydubai Flight Incident

A criminal investigation has been launched against two senior officials in Israel's Ministry of Transport, Avri Cohen and Dvir Rubinstein, in connection with a security lapse on a Flydubai flight. The probe centers on suspicions of conflicts of interest arising from outside employment held by the two officials while they were responsible for aviation oversight.

Avri Cohen, who served as the senior director for emergency, security, information, and cyber affairs at the Ministry, also reportedly worked as a cadet security officer for an Israeli airline operating abroad. Dvir Rubinstein, director of the aviation security operations center at the Ministry, is said to have concurrently advised foreign airlines. Rubinstein had previously spoken to the media on behalf of the Ministry following an attempted attack on the Flydubai flight, addressing the security failures.

The investigation was prompted by a report revealing that the Ministry's security department was responsible for the security of flights entering Israel, including conducting threat assessments and airport inspections. This came to light after it was discovered that the co-pilot on the Flydubai flight was a citizen of Oman, a country with no diplomatic relations with Israel. Shortly after the incident, the Ministry issued a directive requiring airlines to ensure flight crew members are not citizens of countries that do not have diplomatic ties with Israel.

In response to the allegations, the Ministry of Transport stated that Rubinstein provides services to the Ministry through outsourcing and is not a state employee. His other professional activities, it was stated, were approved according to law and conducted outside his working hours with the Ministry.