Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said Tuesday on 103 FM that Shin Bet Director David Zini requested a meeting to consult on a security matter, and Bennett provided him with advice. The statement confirms the meeting between the two, which The Zioneer previously reported on.
Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett confirmed Tuesday morning on 103 FM that Shin Bet Director David Zini requested a meeting with him to consult on a security matter, and that Bennett provided advice. The remarks add a new detail to the report first published by The Zioneer on Sunday: that Bennett was asked for counsel and gave it.
The initial report of the meeting came on Sunday, July 26, at 19:09 Jerusalem, when N12's Yaron Avraham reported that Zini met with Bennett in recent days amid rising threats against current and former elected officials. The Zioneer carried that report. The following evening, Monday, July 27, at 22:30 Jerusalem, Zini himself confirmed that he had met Bennett, opposition leader Yair Lapid, and opposition candidate Gadi Eisenkot on Prime Minister Netanyahu's instruction, and that he asked them not to politicize security issues. Benny Gantz also confirmed a meeting with Zini on Monday.
The meetings are part of a series of consultations Zini has been conducting with both coalition and opposition figures. As The Zioneer reported on July 23, Zini had sought a meeting with Eisenkot ahead of a possible change of government. Zini's own statement emphasized that the meetings were authorized by Netanyahu and aimed at keeping security matters above politics, amid ongoing public criticism of the Shin Bet's handling of the October 7 attacks.
Bennett did not specify the exact security issue discussed. The content of the consultation remains undisclosed, and it is not yet known whether Zini has completed his rounds of meetings with senior political figures.
2 developments
- DevelopingShin Bet chief Zini: I met Eisenkot, Bennett, Lapid on Netanyahu's instruction, asked them not to politicize security
- StrongShin Bet chief Zini seeks meeting with PM candidate Eisenkot ahead of possible power transition
- DevelopingBlue and White chairman Gantz says he met Shin Bet chief Zini in recent days
- StrongShin Bet chief Zini meets opposition leader Lapid for first time since taking office
Source and signal
- Open-source intake