Shelly Dadon hy''d
Shelly Dadon hy''dCourtesy of the Dadon Family

Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovich (Yisrael Beytenu) was put on the spot in the Knesset about the fact that last week, some unknown source leaked the final phone call of terror victim Shelly Dadon hy''d to the media.

The 20-year-old in May was brutally strangled and stabbed 17 times to death by an Arab taxi driver who admitted to the crime before later denying it. She called her cousin Tal Perez in the final phone call, saying "what a scary taxi! I left at a quarter to seven. I can't breathe..." at which point choking sounds are heard and the call cuts off.

MK Yifat Kariv (Yesh Atid) asked Aharonovich from the Knesset podium "last Wednesday it was published in the media, in opposition to the request of the family, the recording of the youth who was murdered. Why was the recording leaked to the media in opposition to the request of the family?"

"You hint that the recording that was published was passed to the media by the police. The hint is that the police leaked," responded Aharonovich. "I want to clarify: the police spokesperson didn't give the media the recording and expressed regret over the leak. As far as is known to the police, this wasn't a leak from the police."

"The family can turn to the Police Investigation Unit if it suspects the police," added the minister. "The leak of investigative materials in the media is burned into (public) awareness as a leak by the police despite that not being so. Other sources are involved and it cannot be ruled out that the transfer of material to the media was done by prosecutors and defense attorneys of the attorney's office."

In response, Kariv said "I'm disappointed by your reply, you accuse the attorney's office? Are you the courts? Who exactly are you accusing? The answer you should have given is that there needs to be a self-examination (of the police)."

"If there's a smidgen of falseness, you or someone for you can turn to the Police Investigation Unit. Watch your words, I checked and you didn't, the materials are also with other sources," responded a heated Aharonovich. "Let's check together with what other sources the materials appeared. You don't need to accuse the police."

The police, and Aharonovich in particular, have come in for heavy criticism for "covering up" Dadon's murder, with some suggesting it is part of a general ploy to deflect attention from the Arab terrorism engulfing Israel. Dadon was murdered in May, but was only recognized as a terror victim two-and-a-half months later.