Israeli security agency defends use of threatening messages
Israel’s Shin Bet internal security agency is defending its use of a surveillance tool that was used to send threatening text messages to Palestinian protesters at Jerusalem’s most sensitive holy site two years ago JERUSALEM -- Israel’s Shin Bet internal security agency is defending its use of a sophisticated surveillance tool that was used to send threatening text messages to Palestinian protesters during unrest at Jerusalem’s most sensitive holy site two years ago. A leading civil rights group has asked Israel’s Supreme Court to halt the practice, saying the threatening messages exceeded the authorities of the Shin Bet. It has also noted that the messages were sent erroneously to people uninvolved in the unrest. In a May 4 submission, the Shin Bet asked the court to dismiss the case. It said the tracking technology was a legitimate tool within the scope of its authority. It described the misfired messages as an isolated error, said it had identified “several specific flaws in the...