Israeli Police Doubt Foreign Interference in Elections, Focus Shifts to Party Funding

Israeli police have submitted an assessment to the government's legal advisor, casting doubt on the feasibility of continuing an investigation into alleged foreign interference in Knesset elections. The assessment suggests that materials provided by the Shin Bet do not support suspicions of security violations or election result manipulation. Instead, the case may be limited to minor allegations concerning party financing irregularities.

Channel 12 reported that police presented a professional opinion to Legal Advisor Gali Baharav-Miara on Monday, expressing significant skepticism about the investigation's progress due to weak evidence. The police believe there is no basis for suspicions of security breaches or influencing the integrity and outcomes of the elections. The report indicated that the case might narrow down to a minor infraction by former MK Ayman Odeh, without specifying the nature of the error or its legality.

The investigation is being conducted by a joint unit of police and Shin Bet investigators, overseen by three senior officials from both agencies. The Legal Advisor receives regular updates on the investigation's developments.

i24NEWS reported that the police assessment indicates that the evidence from the Shin Bet raises, at most, suspicions related to party financing, not voter bribery or foreign intervention aimed at influencing elections. A police official stated, "There is no drama, the matter is much less than what was published in the media. The main issue is party financing."

These developments reflect a decline in the basis for initial claims of foreign interference in the Arab community's elections. The investigation now centers on potential minor party financing violations, with no evidence supporting allegations of vote manipulation. Sources familiar with the investigation confirmed to Haaretz that the Shin Bet has not provided evidence supporting its chief, David Zini's, claims of foreign interference, suggesting the issue is not primarily security-related and its criminal nature is questionable.

The investigation examined intelligence regarding hundreds of thousands of shekels from the Palestinian Authority, but the Shin Bet has not established a link between these funds and electoral bribery for an Arab party or the use of fuel vouchers to influence voters. The Legal Advisor had previously stated on Sunday that she had not seen data that could affect election results or substantiate claims of interference leading to changes in outcomes.

The case originated from suspicions raised by the Shin Bet chief before the Knesset elections concluded, alleging large sums of money were transferred by a foreign entity to influence results. He called for investigations into former MK Ayman Odeh, MKs Ahmed Tibi and Mansour Abbas, and the head of the National Democratic Alliance party, Sami Abu Shehadeh, without providing supporting evidence.

These developments occur as outgoing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to demand the completion of the foreign interference investigation, despite reports of weak evidence. Netanyahu called on Tuesday in the Knesset to remove restrictions he claims the Legal Advisor imposed on the investigation, concurrent with efforts to form an alternative government led by Gadi Eisenkot.