Knesset committee grants immunity request to MK Tali Gottlieb

After three stormy days of hearings, the Knesset House Committee approved MK Tali Gottlieb’s request for parliamentary immunity from criminal prosecution. The vote passed 11 to 3, and the final decision will go to the full Knesset on Wednesday.

Gottlieb is expected to be indicted for exposing the identity of a Shin Bet officer, who is the partner of activist Shikma Bressler. The committee accepted two grounds for immunity, that the act was carried out in the course of her parliamentary duties, and that the indictment was filed in bad faith or in a discriminatory manner.

Gottlieb told lawmakers, “I revealed Shikma Bressler’s partner deliberately.” She added that parliamentary immunity is “sacred,” and argued that attempts to intimidate elected officials would fail. She also said she believed there had been “subversion and rebellion” that the Shin Bet did not investigate.

Earlier, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara said the case began after the Shin Bet itself approached investigators because of the danger created by disclosing the details of an operative whose identity is barred from publication during wartime. She rejected claims of selective enforcement, saying the indictment concerns the publication itself, which lies at the core of the alleged offense and harms protected security interests. Opposition lawmakers Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid and the Democrats sharply criticized the move.