Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) Chief David Zini's brother, Bezalel, is suspected of smuggling cigarettes into Gaza, Israeli authorities announced on Tuesday.
Following the announcement, Zini's father, Rabbi Yosef Zini, claimed that the authorities' true target is not Bezalel but the Shin Bet head.
"Everything is done without fear of anything," Zini told Ynet. "They don't want to bring him down, but his brother. God willing, most of the public understands this well."
Courts lift partial gag order on smuggling case
At the end of January, Ashkelon Magistrate’s Court revealed that Israeli authorities are probing a multi-suspect security case involving the alleged smuggling of goods from inside Israel into the Gaza Strip after partially lifting a sweeping gag order on the investigation.
According to Israel Police and the Shin Bet, the probe concerns dozens of items allegedly transferred clandestinely for financial gain.
One of the suspects was announced as a relative of Zini, though law enforcement and the court stressed that there is no indication that the Shin Bet head himself is implicated in the alleged wrongdoing.
The decision, authored by Ashkelon Magistrate’s Court Judge Yaniv Ben Harush, partially acceded to requests by journalists and media organizations to scale back a blanket publication ban initially imposed on December 20.
Sarah Ben-Nun contributed to this report.