Israeli Government Sees 21% Rise in Freedom of Information Requests Amid Transparency Concerns

In 2025, the Israeli government received 16,896 freedom of information requests, marking a 21% increase from 13,954 requests in 2024, according to a report released by the Governmental Freedom of Information Unit in the Ministry of Justice. The ministries receiving the highest volume of requests were the Ministry of Transport and Road Safety (2,422), Ministry of Education (2,245), Israel Police (1,525), and Ministry of Health (769).

The report highlighted that the authorities with the highest rates of justified complaints regarding their handling of requests were the Ministry of Health (41 complaints), the Ministry of Transport (28), and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) (18). The Ministry of Health was declared in violation of the Freedom of Information Law 45 times in 2025, the Ministry of Transport 22 times, and the IDF 11 times. Overall, 44% more complaints were processed by the unit compared to the previous year.

In terms of responsiveness, the Population and Immigration Authority, Ministry of Welfare and Social Security, Governmental Water and Sewage Authority, and Ministry of Economy had the highest positive response rates, ranging from 66.6% to 78.9%. Conversely, the Ministry of Justice rejected the largest share of requests (45.2%), followed by the Ministry of Labor (41.7%), the Courts Administration (39.5%), and the Israel Police (37.3%). Common reasons for refusal included privacy concerns, unlocatable information, and internal deliberations.

The report also noted significant delays in responding to requests, with the IDF exceeding the legal response time in 75% of cases, followed by the Ministry of Communications (61.4%), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (34.8%), and Ministry of Environmental Protection (34%). Additionally, 35% of government ministries and subordinate units failed to publish their legally required annual reports for 2024.

In 2025, 738 freedom of information petitions were filed against public authorities, mostly due to failure to respond on time. Non-governmental organizations filed nearly 69% of these petitions. The Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Health, IDF, and Prime Minister's Office faced the highest numbers of petitions. Courts ruled in favor of petitioners in 88% of cases, awarding over 1.18 million shekels in legal costs against government ministries.

Shlomi Bilbaski, head of the Governmental Freedom of Information Unit, emphasized the importance of the right to information as a democratic foundation and called on ministries to improve their responsiveness and eliminate the persistent issue of non-compliance revealed by the report.