Liberman-backed bill would subject cabinet ministers to polygraph tests

Will Israeli ministers be subjected to truth detectors?

By LAHAV HARKOV
Updated: JUNE 21, 2017 01:44
Polygraph machine [Illustrative] (photo credit: ING IMAGE/ASAP)
Polygraph machine [Illustrative]
(photo credit: ING IMAGE/ASAP)
Security cabinet ministers may have to undergo polygraph tests on leaked materials, if a bill backed by Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman becomes law.
Yisrael Beytenu faction chairman Robert Ilatov submitted the legislation on Tuesday, which states that it’s “meant to give the tools to deal with information leaks, espionage and the exposure of state secrets that can harm Israel’s national security.”
According to the proposal, members of the security cabinet would have to undergo a polygraph test once a year, of the kind given to security officials receiving clearance.
Avigdor Liberman ( Credit: Marc Israel Sellem)
Avigdor Liberman ( Credit: Marc Israel Sellem)
Ilatov explained that “this bill came in light of repeated leaks from the cabinet, with a goal of preventing this dangerous phenomenon that threatens the security of the citizens of the State of Israel.
“Discussions in the cabinet cannot be a tool for political advantage,” Ilatov added.
“As a member of the [Knesset] Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, I find the severity [of the leaks] chilling, and we must put an end to them.”
Earlier this year, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s chief of staff Yoav Horowitz said that he is considering using polygraphs after information leaked from a security cabinet meeting regarding Israel’s policy following US President Donald Trump’s inauguration, though that was far from the first time the Prime Minister’s Office under Netanyahu suggested such tests. Liberman has also called for lie detector tests of security cabinet ministers multiple times over his years as minister.