Over the last few days, parties on the left and on the right called on the Knesset speaker to form a parliamentary commission of inquiry to investigate blistering reports about the alleged conduct of the Israel Police. According to these reports, the police tracked the movements and activities of civilians by using a spyware app called Pegasus, which it acquired from Israeli technology firm NSO in 2013. The app was allegedly installed in the cell phones of various social activists and mayors without a warrant, as required by law.
Ever since the financial paper Calcalist first published the results of its investigation Jan. 18, more and more disturbing details have come to light. The police were caught with their pants down, and now, given all of their contradictory statements, it seems that a formal investigation is inevitable. It certainly is a rare incident, especially now when the right and the left are united in their outrage.