Ex-Shin Bet head denies reports on wiretapping IDF, Mossad chiefs
Yoram Cohen issues statement saying reports Prime Minister Netanyahu asked him to wiretap then-IDF chief Benny Gantz and then-Mossad director Tamir Pardo were 'untrue.'
"I don't normally comment in the media about the professional discourse between the prime minister and the Shin Bet head. However, the reports in the media about instructions allegedly given to me by the prime minister while I served as the Shin Bet director—to specifically wiretap Gantz and Pardo—are untrue," Cohen said in a statement.
Cohen's statement follows vehement denials by Netanyahu himself, who posted a video to social media saying: "There's some show that claims to be presenting facts, where it was claimed I instructed the former head of the Shin Bet to wiretap the IDF chief and the head of the Mossad. There's only one problem with that: It's a complete lie. I'm not the only one to say this, the former Shin Bet also said: It's nonsense, it's a lie."
Earlier Friday, the prime minister issued a denial on Twitter, writing: "I've never asked to wiretap the chief of staff and former Mossad chief. This is a complete lie! Lies have no limit!"
According to the report on investigative TV show Uvda, Netanyahu turned to Cohen in the last few months of his tenure at the head of the intelligence agency and asked him to use the Shin Bet's capabilities to monitor several top defense officials, including Gantz and Pardo, by wiretapping their phones.
Cohen was reportedly "upset" by the request and refused the prime minister's request, saying, "The Shin Bet is not supposed to use such extreme measures against leading Mossad and IDF figures."
While Cohen's statement notes he wasn't instructed to "specifically" wiretap Gantz and Pardo, there was no mention of others he may have allegedly been asked by the prime minister to spy on.
