Histadrut chair among detainees in massive corruption probe

Following a prolonged police probe, investigators of the Lahav 433 national crime unit raided the offices of the Histadrut (General Federation of Labor in Israel) this morning and arrested dozens of people, among them senior officials of the organization, on suspicion of corruption offences. Histadrut chairperson Arnon Bar-David is among those involved in the affair, and he was detained for questioning together with his wife. Among those under investigation are heads of local authorities and senior business figures.

The allegations reported so far are that a businessperson in the insurance industry acted to appoint directors of government companies with which he had connections from among Histadrut union heads, in exchange for them acting to transfer the business of workers in local authorities and government companies to the insurance agencies that he controlled. Hundreds are people are expected to be questioned in an affair that raises suspicions of bribery, breach of trust, money laundering, and tax offences. Those arrested are due to be brought before the Rishon LeZion Magistrates Court for a hearing on extending their detention.

As far as is known, this morning the police raided 52 private homes, twelve offices of government authorities, six local authorities, and five corporations. The raids included the office of Israel Railways workers committee chairperson Liav Eliyahu, and senior officials were detained from the municipalities of Rishon LeZion, Kiryat Bialik, and Harish. Further arrests are expected.

According to the allegations that are emerging, a senior executive at the insurance agency in question handed out jobs in a long list of public bodies. The investigation had been proceeding covertly for two years at the national fraud unit. According to the police announcement, senior people at the Histadrut, local authorities and government companies are suspected of involvement in taking bribes from businesspeople in exchange for advancing their business interests.

Those arrested are suspects only, have not been convicted of any crime, and are entitled to the presumption of innocence.

Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on November 3, 2025.

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