An internal National Security Council (NSC) document obtained by Galai Tzahal reveals a series of failures in the handling of security for foreign flights to Israel: The Transportation Ministry failed to fulfill the responsibility assigned to it despite warnings on the issue, after professional officials in the ministry’s Security Division strongly opposed assuming the responsibility and argued that they did not possess the capabilities required to carry it out.
According to the report published Sunday morning, as early as July 2021, the Security Cabinet determined that the Shin Bet would no longer be responsible for security on foreign flights to Israel and that responsibility would be transferred to the Transportation Ministry.
Until that decision, the Shin Bet had also been responsible for security screening of crew members arriving in Israel on foreign flights. The Cabinet decision stipulated that “the Civil Aviation Authority in the Transportation Ministry will verify that security directives in foreign countries comply with the provisions of international conventions." However, the NSC document states that “the Transportation Ministry is not acting in accordance with the decision."
According to the report, this was also one of the failures identified by the State Comptroller in a classified report from May 2024, which remains under a confidentiality order.
Following the State Comptroller’s report, the Security Cabinet decided on May 23, 2024, that the NSC would establish a team comprising representatives of the Transportation Ministry, Civil Aviation Authority, Shin Bet, Mossad and Finance Ministry to examine the security arrangements for civilian aviation to Israel and formulate recommendations for changes.
As part of the review, which lasted approximately a year, the NSC and Shin Bet pushed for the Transportation Ministry to assume security responsibility for foreign flights. The Shin Bet argued that it lacked sufficient resources and funding to handle the issue.
However, according to the report, professional officials within the Transportation Ministry strongly opposed the move. Avri Cohen, director of the ministry’s Security Division, argued during internal discussions that the responsibility was too great and that, given the high level of threats facing Israel, a security agency was needed to oversee the issue.
A source familiar with the discussions told Army Radio: “The entire professional staff at the Transportation Ministry strongly opposed transferring the authority - with the exception of Civil Aviation Authority Director Shmuel Zakai. Everyone dug in their heels and told Minister Miri Regev that it would be a serious mistake to assume such enormous responsibility."
The source added: “There were major blowups, confrontations and strongly worded letters - but Minister Regev, Director-General Ben Zaken and Civil Aviation Authority Director Zakai did not listen. The minister sided with Zakai’s position, and after a meeting with the Prime Minister, they came out with responsibility having been transferred to the Transportation Ministry."
In mid-2025, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided the issue, determining unequivocally that responsibility would be transferred to the Transportation Ministry, Minister Regev and the ministry’s security personnel, despite the opposition of professional officials.
However, according to information obtained by Army Radio, even after assuming responsibility, the Transportation Ministry’s Security Division did not approach the Shin Bet or Mossad even once to request assistance with security screening or an investigation of a crew member or passenger on a flight. For their part, the Shin Bet and Mossad also did not assume broader responsibility for the issue.
A source familiar with the details also criticized the security agencies: “The Shin Bet and Mossad knew very well that the Transportation Ministry was in disarray, that it didn’t have the personnel, positions or capabilities. How could they relinquish responsibility like that and dump everything on the Transportation Ministry? The responsibility lies with the Transportation Ministry - but the Shin Bet and Mossad also allowed this failure to happen, and the writing was on the wall."
According to the report, as early as March 2025, the NSC warned that the Transportation Ministry was not fulfilling its responsibilities and explicitly stated that the ministry was acting contrary to the Cabinet decision.
The report stated that, in practice, the oversight intended to ensure that foreign airlines complied with international agreements and did not send crew members from countries with which Israel has no diplomatic relations was not carried out.