Israel Shin Bet finds no evidence of foreign election meddling claims

Israel's domestic security service has reportedly found no evidence to support claims of foreign interference in last month's election. The findings come amid a politically charged dispute over allegations that money was transferred from the Palestinian Authority, Qatar, or other Arab countries to influence the vote. The investigation is still ongoing, but officials quoted in the report said no substantiation has been found so far.

According to the report, two senior Israeli law enforcement officials said investigators had not found evidence that several hundred thousand shekels were transferred from the Palestinian Authority to Arab-led parties in Israel. They also said there were no transfers from Qatar or any other Arab country under review. The claims had been linked to allegations from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Likud party, which suggested money was used to boost turnout among Palestinian citizens of Israel.

The report said dozens of people have been questioned, but no evidence of money transfers has emerged. One official quoted in the report said the matter was "certainly not a security matter" and was highly doubtful even as a criminal case. Another said the case so far rests on intelligence information without real substantiation.

The allegations have also continued a wider anti-Qatar campaign in Israel that predates the election. The dispute matters because it touches on the legitimacy of the election result and the balance of power in parliament. The parties led by Palestinian citizens of Israel won 19 seats in the October 27 vote, a result confirmed by election authorities.

That outcome has left Jewish parties opposed to Netanyahu with enough seats to potentially force him from office if they can work with Arab-led parties. The political stakes have risen further after Israeli President Isaac Herzog tasked opposition politician Gadi Eisenkot with the first attempt to form a government. That move could open the way to a change in leadership if coalition talks succeed.

The report also noted that the allegations against Qatar echo earlier claims made after the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attacks, when a separate influence campaign was reported to have targeted the Gulf state. What remains unclear is whether the investigation will produce any new evidence or whether the claims will be dropped. It is also not yet clear whether the inquiry will have any legal or political consequences for Netanyahu, Likud, or the security officials involved.

For now, the reported findings appear to weaken the case for the interference allegations, while leaving the broader coalition struggle unresolved.

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