Following the intervention of the Shin Bet head: 'Yisrael Yehudit' will be registered as a party

As first revealed in Olam Katan, Shin Bet head David Zini decided to re-examine the classified materials that had blocked the registration of the "Yisrael Yehudit Shlema Ve'eitana" party. The review is now complete: the Shin Bet has withdrawn its objection, and the Registrar of Parties has approved the party's legal registration.

The party, identified with Michael Ben-Ari and Baruch Marzel, had spent more than two years trying to register, but its requests were repeatedly rejected based on Shin Bet opinions. Following these decisions, the party petitioned the Supreme Court, arguing that the disqualification was based on attributed intentions and classified intelligence that prevented them from mounting an effective defense.

In the original opinion, written during the term of former Shin Bet head Ronen Bar, it was determined: "We have reliable intelligence indicating that the party is led by and based on figures who hold the ideology of the terrorist organization [Kach] and act to disseminate and promote it. In other words, the party is a continuation of the terrorist organization [Kach]."

Zini re-examines the information

Earlier this month, we revealed in Olam Katan that shortly before a decisive Supreme Court hearing with an expanded panel of five judges, Zini asked the Attorney General to postpone the session by two weeks. The purpose was to allow him to personally review the materials from his predecessor's term to verify their validity and current relevance.

In the request submitted to the court, it was noted that while the Registrar's decision had an administrative basis, it relied heavily on classified information, making it essential to grant the service head's request for a review. The party's attorney, Adv. Itzhak Bam, welcomed the shift in direction while criticizing the Shin Bet's conduct during the Ronen Bar era.

The State Attorney's Office has now notified the Supreme Court that the opinion has been revised following the re-examination. According to the state, gaps were found in the intelligence analysis, and the existing information does not meet the threshold required to prevent the party's registration.

From "continuation of [Kach]" to "connection"

The shift between the two opinions is significant. Instead of the previous determination that the party is a direct continuation of the Kach movement, Zini wrote in the updated opinion: "From all the data in our possession, it is evident that there is a basis indicating a connection between the 'Yisrael Yehudit Shlema Ve'eitana' party and the Kach movement."

Practically, this means the Shin Bet no longer opposes the party's registration. Following this change in position, the Registrar of Parties announced her approval, and the state has requested that the Supreme Court strike the proceedings related to this matter.

Zini's decision concludes the process we first reported: a thorough re-examination of a serious intelligence assessment rather than an automatic adoption of previous findings. After more than two years of refusals and a lengthy legal battle, the Yisrael Yehudit party will now be able to register legally and continue its operations in the political arena.