Election Committee Chair Orders Shin Bet to Probe Foreign Election Bribery Claims

In this episode

The stories Maya and Daniel cover, in order. Each one opens the full story.

1. Election Committee Chair Orders Shin Bet to Probe Foreign Election Bribery Claims
2. IDF Soldier Charged With Spying for Iran, Leaking Interceptor Details
3. Clashes Near Bnei Brak: Police and Haredim Injured in Protest
4. Thailand Revokes Rabbi's Citizenship Amidst Investigations
5. Israel Election Update: Netanyahu Bloc Leads, But No Majority Seen
6. Herzog Urges Parties to Avoid New Elections Amid Coalition Stalemate

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Transcript

Maya

The head of Israel's elections has ordered the Shin Bet to investigate claims of foreign money buying influence in this week's vote.

Daniel

And separately, an Israeli soldier is charged with spying for Iran, including passing on details about interceptors.

Maya

This is Good Morning, Israel from baba News. It's Friday, October thirtieth. I'm Maya.

Daniel

And I'm Daniel.

Maya

Yesterday we told you Likud wanted the Shin Bet brought into its fraud allegations. Overnight, it actually happened. Just not quite the way Likud framed it.

Daniel

Right. Noam Sohlberg, the chairman of the Central Elections Committee, the body that runs Israel's elections, has ordered Shin Bet head David Zini to investigate allegations of foreign election bribery.

Maya

And this came from Zini first?

Daniel

It did. Zini presented Sohlberg with information described as exceptionally grave, about undue influence through foreign funding.

Maya

Exceptionally grave is not a phrase security chiefs throw around.

Daniel

No. And Sohlberg didn't leave it open ended. He's demanding findings within a week, to protect the integrity of the election.

Maya

One week, while ballots are still being counted. Who is this about?

Daniel

The investigations underway focus on alleged foreign funding of Arab parties. Those parties are on course for a record nineteen seats.

Maya

Which is exactly why this matters so much right now.

Daniel

Exactly. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc is at fifty-three seats, Gadi Eisenkot's bloc at forty-eight. Neither reaches sixty-one, the majority in the Knesset.

Maya

So the Arab parties could end up as kingmakers.

Daniel

That's the scenario. And now there's a security investigation hanging over that same group of parties.

Maya

Let's be careful here. Where does this actually stand?

Daniel

These are allegations being investigated. Nothing has been proven. But the difference from yesterday is real. It's no longer one party asking for a probe. It's the Shin Bet bringing information to the elections chief, and him ordering an investigation.

Maya

And the count itself?

Daniel

The double envelope ballots are still being counted. Those are the votes cast away from people's regular polling stations, by soldiers, hospital patients and others.

Maya

So the numbers could still shift a little, and the probe lands right around when President Isaac Herzog starts his consultations next week.

Daniel

That's the timing to keep in mind.

Maya

Staying with security, and a story about Iran reaching inside the army.

Daniel

An Israeli soldier has been indicted for allegedly spying for Iran. According to the indictment, the soldier passed on sensitive military information, including details about interceptors and military bases.

Maya

Interceptors. As in the missile defense systems that protect Israeli cities.

Daniel

Right, which is what makes this so serious. The soldier reportedly communicated with Iranian intelligence for about a year, and was paid in cryptocurrency.

Maya

Was it just one soldier?

Daniel

The handler allegedly tried to recruit other soldiers too. And they reportedly discussed setting up encrypted communication and a cover story.

Maya

So this was meant to be a long-term operation.

Daniel

That's how it reads. And it fits a pattern Israeli security services have been warning about. Iranian intelligence approaching Israelis, often online, offering money for information.

Maya

What happens now?

Daniel

The soldier's detention has been extended until November twelfth, twenty twenty-six, while the case moves forward.

Maya

Now to a domestic story. Thursday evening, near Bnei Brak.

Daniel

Bnei Brak is a largely Haredi, ultra-Orthodox city just east of Tel Aviv. There was a protest there against the arrest of a young man accused of evading military service.

Maya

The draft. Which has been one of Israel's most explosive issues.

Daniel

Absolutely. Most Haredi men have historically not served, and the arrest of draft evaders has become a flashpoint.

Maya

How bad did it get?

Daniel

Seven people were injured. Three police officers and four Haredi protesters. Police used stun grenades to disperse the crowd, and there were road closures and traffic disruptions.

Maya

And then the argument afterward.

Daniel

Right. There were accusations traded between Haredi circles and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who oversees the police, about how the police acted and what their motivations were, coming so soon after the election.

Maya

And with the Haredi parties a key part of any coalition math, that tension doesn't stay on the street.

Daniel

No, it walks straight into the coalition talks.

Maya

Abroad now, to Thailand, and a decision that has worried Jewish communities.

Daniel

Thailand's Prime Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, revoked the citizenship of Rabbi Yosef Chaim Kantor on October twenty-eighth.

Maya

Who is he?

Daniel

He's led the Chabad movement in Thailand for more than thirty years. Chabad is a Jewish organization that runs community centers around the world, and in Thailand it serves huge numbers of Israeli travelers.

Maya

What's the stated reason?

Daniel

The Thai government cites his use of his earlier American passport. The rabbi, along with associated organizations, is also reportedly under investigation.

Maya

How is Chabad responding?

Daniel

It plans to challenge the decision in court. It says the rabbi considers Thailand his home.

Maya

And the bigger worry?

Daniel

The future of the Jewish community's presence in Thailand. For many Israelis, that Chabad house is the first stop on a trip there.

Maya

Which brings us, oddly enough, to a conversation happening in a lot of Israeli living rooms.

Daniel

Emigration. Israelis are increasingly talking about moving abroad, to places like the United States, Canada, Britain, Portugal, and yes, Thailand.

Maya

And the driver is the political uncertainty.

Daniel

That's what the conversations reflect. Concern about the situation and how it affects people's lives, and a search for stability.

Maya

Talking about leaving and actually leaving are very different things, though.

Daniel

Very different. But a deadlocked election and talk of yet another vote doesn't help the mood.

Maya

Quick round. Your wallet first, if you drive in Israel.

Daniel

On November first, ninety-five octane gasoline drops to seven point three five shekels per liter.

Maya

Enjoy it while it lasts?

Daniel

Pretty much. A temporary tax cut expires on November fifth. Unless Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich extends it, the price could jump to eight point three five shekels a liter.

Maya

A full shekel a liter. That's a tank-filling decision for a lot of families.

Daniel

And a decision for a finance minister in a caretaker period.

Maya

Iran again, from Washington.

Daniel

The top U S military commander for the Middle East has briefed President Donald Trump on military options against Iran. That comes as tensions rise and U S military flights to Israel increase.

Maya

We told you on Wednesday about reports of strikes after the American midterms.

Daniel

Those reports are still out there. There are also claims that Iran plans to interfere in both American and Israeli elections.

Maya

Which lands differently after this morning's spy story.

Daniel

It does. And at sea, three tankers struck mines near the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that a big share of the world's oil passes through.

Maya

And the letter we mentioned yesterday?

Daniel

Iran has confirmed receiving a letter from U S Vice President J D Vance about peace talks. President Trump says the letter was about medical supplies.

Maya

Two very different readings of one envelope. Israel has plenty of experience with envelopes this week.

Daniel

Double ones, even.

Maya

So what should people watch today?

Daniel

The double envelope count. As it wraps up, watch whether any seat moves between parties, especially among the smaller ones, because in a race this tight, one seat changes who has leverage.

Maya

Follow Good Morning, Israel so tomorrow's episode is waiting for you.

Daniel

See you tomorrow morning.