Shin Bet employee indicted in Gaza smuggling affair alongside Bezalel Zini
State Attorney’s Office confirms charges in Lod District Court • Gag order remains in place.
An indictment was filed Thursday against a Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) employee accused of smuggling goods into Gaza for payment, in a case being handled under a sweeping publication ban.
In a joint statement, Israel Police and the Shin Bet said that following a joint investigation by the Serious and International Crime Unit at the Lahav 433 National Crime Unit and the Shin Bet, the Tel Aviv District Attorney’s Office filed an indictment at the Lod District Court against several Israeli citizens, including a Shin Bet employee and a Palestinian, on suspicion of aiding the enemy in wartime, alongside a series of fraud, bribery, and terrorism-financing related offenses.
In a separate announcement, the State Attorney’s Office confirmed that the indictment includes charges of aiding the enemy in wartime, obtaining property by fraud under aggravated circumstances, prohibited action in property for terror purposes, taking and giving bribes, deceit, subterfuge, and prohibited dealings in property.
According to investigators, the defendants smuggled goods into the Gaza Strip in exchange for large sums of money – allegations that remain subject to a gag order on further details of the indictment and investigation for state security reasons, with only the text of the announcements cleared for publication.
Earlier this month, prosecutors filed indictments in the broader “Gaza smuggling affair,” describing a network that allegedly trafficked prohibited goods into the Strip during wartime for significant profit, in circumstances authorities say could strengthen Hamas economically and operationally.
Armed men seen secure trucks loaded with Humanitarian Aid entering Gaza through the Israeli Kerem Shalom Crossing, in Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip, September 19, 2025. (credit: SAEED MOHAMMED/FLASH90)
The defendants include eight individuals in one indictment, and four in another, including Bezalel Zini, the brother of Shin Bet head David Zini. The intelligence agency has clarified that its chief was wholly uninvolved in the affair.
According to the indictment, all three were involved in systematically smuggling goods into Gaza, fully aware that they could end up in the hands of Hamas or its affiliates.
Recordings obtained by news outlets this week appear to show one of the defendants coordinating cigarette shipments into Gaza with an intermediary in Hebron, discussing quantities, pricing, and transfer logistics.
Bezalel Zini indicted for smuggling cigarettes into Gaza
Prosecutors allege the suspects acted for financial gain despite knowing the goods could ultimately reach Hamas or its affiliates.
Per Zini’s indictment, he served as a reserve soldier and was responsible for the logistical operations of “Operation Uriah,” holding entry permits for the convoys of equipment and aid heading into the Gaza Strip.
He was accused of smuggling cigarettes into Gaza through the Sufa border crossing three times during the summer of 2025, when Gaza was declared a closed military zone, and of receiving a total of approximately 365,000 shekels in payment.
The indictment stated that Zini knew the goods might end up in the hands of terrorist groups, including Hamas, and be used to strengthen their power, fund activities, and maintain control over the Gaza Strip.
It is also claimed that the acts were carried out for financial gain, bypassing the restrictions the state had imposed on the entry of goods into Gaza during the war, and with full knowledge of the security risks involved.
