Suspicion of transfer of confidential information by the Shin Bet to journalist Ben Caspit

The Shin Bet allegedly transferred confidential data regarding the criminal record and investigations of right-wing activist Elisha Yered, after it was published that MK Limor Son Har-Melech (Otzma Yehudit) decided to appoint Yered as her spokesperson. These details emerged from a defamation lawsuit filed by Yered against journalist Ben Caspit, which is currently being heard in the Central District Court.

The affair began with a post by Ben Caspit on social media, in which he wrote that Yered had been under administrative detention — a claim the right-wing activist defined as false, leading him to file a libel suit. In an attempt to establish the "truth in publication" defense, Caspit submitted an affidavit to the court with attached screenshots of his WhatsApp correspondence with the Shin Bet spokesperson's office.

Documentation of the correspondence shows that on November 13, 2022, Caspit contacted the Shin Bet spokesperson's office to verify information. In the correspondence, Caspit asked: "I am publishing this in my name, okay? Administrative detention." The Shin Bet spokesperson's office replied: "Wait, let me verify," and shortly after confirmed: "Indeed, everything is correct. He was both in administrative detention and in regular prison."

In the subsequent exchange, the Shin Bet spokesperson's office provided Caspit with a breakdown of arrests and dates that appears to be accurate information taken from the organization's registry. According to the quote appearing in the affidavit and the screenshots, the following data was provided:

"Elisha Yered was arrested 17 times. Last arrest in August 2022 for 4 days. In addition, he was distanced from Judea and Samaria several times by administrative order, including for periods of 4 months. End."

The nature of the details provided to Caspit raises suspicion that the Shin Bet spokesperson's office transferred information from the criminal registry in its possession. This exposure raises difficult legal questions, as criminal information is considered confidential under the Criminal Registry Law, and its delivery to a private individual or a journalist is apparently a criminal offense. In his affidavit, Caspit emphasizes that he relied completely on the security source: "I have no reason not to trust the Shin Bet spokesperson's office and the truthfulness of the information I receive from it."

Advocate Menashe Yado of the "Honenu" organization, representing Elisha Yered, responded sharply:

"The Shin Bet committed a serious criminal offense in violation of the Criminal Registry Law when it provided criminal information about Elisha Yered to Ben Caspit. The Shin Bet helped Ben Caspit attack a parliamentary appointment by MK Limor Son Har-Melech. This was done to thwart the parliamentary activity of a Knesset member while committing a criminal offense."

We contacted the Shin Bet spokesperson's office for a response to understand how these confidential data were transferred and whether the move was approved by authorized officials, but no response has been received as of this time.