The Ministerial Committee for Legislation will approve on Monday a new bill that will allow the use of facial recognition cameras in public spaces.
The proposal is led by Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir and Minister of Justice Yariv Levin and will lead to a situation where the defense establishment will have access to cameras without the need for a special order from a court.
The proposal is another step in the fight against increasing crime, though its critics claim that it constitutes a violation of public privacy.
The explanatory notes to the bill state that police will be allowed to deploy facial recognition technology to “prevent, thwart or uncover serious crime and those involved in planning or carrying it out.”
The notes also state that the information would be kept confidential except in security-related cases. "In the context of biometric photo systems, placement and operation will be for the purpose of preventing, thwarting or detecting serious criminal offenses and detecting those involved in planning or committing serious criminal offenses."