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Israeli Security Agency Defends Use of Threatening Messages

Muslim worshippers gather before the morning prayer on the first day of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, outside the Dome of the Rock at the Al-Aqsa mosque complex in the Old City of Jerusalem on April 21, 2023. (AFP)
Muslim worshippers gather before the morning prayer on the first day of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, outside the Dome of the Rock at the Al-Aqsa mosque complex in the Old City of Jerusalem on April 21, 2023. (AFP)
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Israeli Security Agency Defends Use of Threatening Messages

Muslim worshippers gather before the morning prayer on the first day of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, outside the Dome of the Rock at the Al-Aqsa mosque complex in the Old City of Jerusalem on April 21, 2023. (AFP)
Muslim worshippers gather before the morning prayer on the first day of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, outside the Dome of the Rock at the Al-Aqsa mosque complex in the Old City of Jerusalem on April 21, 2023. (AFP)

Israel’s Shin Bet internal security agency is defending its use of a sophisticated surveillance tool that was used to send threatening text messages to Palestinian protesters during unrest at Jerusalem’s most sensitive holy site two years ago.

A leading civil rights group has asked Israel’s Supreme Court to halt the practice, saying the threatening messages exceeded the authorities of the Shin Bet. It has also noted that the messages were sent erroneously to people uninvolved in the unrest.

In a May 4 submission, the Shin Bet asked the court to dismiss the case. It said the tracking technology was a legitimate tool within the scope of its authority.

It described the misfired messages as an isolated error, said it had identified “several specific flaws in the manner of sending the messages” and updated its guidelines to prevent similar mistakes in the future.

It described the tool as “proportionate, balanced and most reasonable.”

The messages were sent to hundreds of Palestinians in May 2021 at the height of one of the city’s most turbulent periods in recent years. At the time, Palestinian protesters were clashing with Israeli police at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in violence that helped fuel an 11-day war between Israel and the Hamas militant group in the Gaza Strip.

Using mobile-phone tracking technology, the Shin Bet sent a text message to people it believed were involved in the clashes and told them “we will hold you accountable” for acts of violence.

The recipients included both Palestinian residents of east Jerusalem, who hold Israeli residency rights, as well as Palestinian citizens of Israel. While some recipients had participated in the clashes, others, including people who lived, worked or prayed in the area, received the message erroneously and said they were surprised or scared. Jewish Israelis in the area are not known to have received the message.

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel has warned that such mass messages could have a “chilling effect” on Israel’s Palestinian minority and says the Shin Bet should properly investigate anyone suspected of breaking the law.

Two of the group’s attorneys, Gil Gan-Mor and Gadeer Nicola, issued a joint statement accusing the Shin Bet of using “intrusive surveillance tools” to intimidate citizens and convey that they are under surveillance.

“Sending a threatening text message to a citizen is not an option in a democratic country,” they said.

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Lebanese President Faces Domestic, Foreign Challenges

Newly-elected Lebanese President Joseph Aoun poses for a picture with his family at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon, January 9, 2025. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS
Newly-elected Lebanese President Joseph Aoun poses for a picture with his family at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon, January 9, 2025. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS
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Lebanese President Faces Domestic, Foreign Challenges

Newly-elected Lebanese President Joseph Aoun poses for a picture with his family at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon, January 9, 2025. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS
Newly-elected Lebanese President Joseph Aoun poses for a picture with his family at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon, January 9, 2025. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS

The election of a new president in Lebanon does not mean the country has come out of the economic and political crises which have gutted it for years. Yet Thursday’s vote marks the beginning of a new phase that carries many challenges for the president and the upcoming government.

It is Joseph Aoun’s responsibility now to appoint a prime minister following binding parliamentary consultations and then form the Cabinet together with the PM.

According to observers, Aoun’s term should carry a roadmap to salvage the country, and a clear plan to address crises and domestic and foreign challenges.

However, there is no magic wand to solve Lebanon’s entire crises.

Instead, Aoun needs a unified working team that should draft a clear ministerial statement that reflects the President’s inaugural speech and his pledge of a “new era” for Lebanon.

“The president's speech constitutes a detailed program for governance. However, his program needs a cabinet capable of implementing it,” former Minister Ibrahim Najjar told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Najjar described the new President as an honest, clean and courageous Lebanese man.

“His election must be followed by the formation of a bold cabinet with new faces, capable of working and making achievements,” he said.

“The Lebanese people expect President Aoun to change the quota-based mentality of politicians. They hope his term will help remove old political figures, who are rooted in the Lebanese quagmire,” the former minister noted.

Former MP Fares Souaid told Asharq Al-Awsat that Aoun’s first task is to implement the Constitution and the National Accord document.

“In the early 1990s, the Constitution was no longer being implemented due to the Syrian occupation of Lebanon. In 2005, the Constitution was again ignored because of Iranian arms.”

Therefore, Soueid said, the Lebanese eagerly expect this new era to constitute a real opportunity for the implementation of both documents.

For years, Lebanon has failed to properly implement its Constitution and UN resolutions, mainly because some political parties had considered their implementation as “a target against their so-called resistance.”

“With the election of President Joseph Aoun, Lebanon has opened a blank page that could meet the aspirations of the Lebanese people, and write a new chapter in the country’s history,” Najjar said.

According to Soueid, Aoun has a task to return Lebanon to its Arab identity. “This is slowly beginning to show through the decline of Iranian influence in the region,” he said.

Also, Soueid said, the new President should mend Lebanon’s relations with the international community by implementing all UN resolutions.

Addressing Parliament and Lebanese people with an acceptance speech, Aoun on Thursday vowed that the Lebanese authorities will have the monopoly on arms and will be committed to a strong state that will extend its sovereignty over the entire territory.

“This is in line with UN resolutions, which if implemented, will bring Lebanon back to the Arab and international scene,” Soueid said.