Shin Bet Takes Over Security for Yashar Party Leader Gadi Eisenkot

The Shin Bet, Israel's domestic security agency, will take charge of security arrangements for Yashar party chairman Gadi Eisenkot starting Sunday, the party announced.

According to the party's statement, a private security company will guard Eisenkot from Sunday morning, operating under the direct instruction of Unit 730 of the Shin Bet.

The move follows a prolonged effort to obtain Shin Bet protection for the heads of political parties. In August, Shin Bet chief David Zini initially determined that Eisenkot did not meet the criteria for protection by the elite Unit 730.

That assessment changed after the Advisory Committee for Personal Security examined updated intelligence and threat evaluations concerning the Yashar leader in September. The committee then recommended that the Shin Bet oversee his security.

Even after Zini approved security for Eisenkot, Yashar told The Jerusalem Post in September that no security detail had yet been assigned to him.

The Shin Bet said Zini had approved a set of measures for party leaders. These include an intelligence oversight and support framework provided by intelligence units, permission for security teams hired by party leaders to carry weapons, coordination between the Shin Bet and those teams, and periodic situation assessments to gauge the threat level facing each leader.

The Ministerial Committee for Shin Bet Affairs gave Zini the authority to set security arrangements for party leaders who hold no public office and are not otherwise entitled to state protection. That authorization stays in force until the next Knesset is sworn in.

Not every party leader who has asked for protection has received it. Yair Golan, chairman of The Democrats, also petitioned for Shin Bet protection, citing a threat level comparable to Eisenkot's. The Shin Bet has denied him immediate protection at this stage.