Police raided the offices of the Histadrut, Israel’s largest labor union, on Monday morning and carried out a wave of arrests of senior officials in what Israel Police Chief Danny Levy said is “one of the most serious cases we have ever investigated.”

Investigators from the Lahav 433 anti-corruption unit arrested eight suspects, including one of the main suspects, Histadrut chairman Arnon Bar-David, along with his wife, and detained 27 others for questioning, including two city mayors and senior municipal officials.

In a massive raid beginning at 6 a.m., police conducted raids on 55 homes, 12 municipal offices, six local authorities, and five corporations. Among the major entities whose representatives are being investigated are Israel Railways (including a raid on the office of the workers’ committee chairman), El Al, Keren Kayemet LeYisrael (KKL-JNF), and the Wingate Institute. Senior officials from the municipalities of Rishon L’Tzion, Harish, Kiryat Bialik, Rosh Ha’ayin, Ashdod, and Kiryat Gat were also detained. Over 350 people are being questioned for suspected bribery, breach of trust, and money laundering.

The case, dubbed the “Hand in Hand” affair, has shaken the public sector and the Histadrut. It revealed a close bribery-based relationship between Bar-David and a prominent businessman who owns a leading insurance agency. Investigators described the dynamic by saying that “Bar-David was his backbone.”

The businessman and senior Histadrut officials and labor committee heads maintained a “give-and-take” system. The businessman allegedly provided them with various bribes, including commissions, payments, and bonuses such as expensive restaurant reservations and luxury vacation trips, allowing him to gain control over senior positions in municipal corporations, local councils, state-owned companies, and various boards. In return, he received lucrative insurance contracts from those same authorities and corporations, channeling large sums of money to his company.

The businessman used his ties to appoint his close associates to key union and board positions across local authorities, government-owned corporations, and major companies.

It should be noted that during the left-wing protests in Israel before the October 7 massacre, Bar-David shut down almost the entire country in an illegal and politically motivated protest against the government of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, including Ben-Gurion Airport, all workplaces in the public and business sectors, malls, banks and universities, and even public hospitals and medical clinics, which operated in “Shabbat mode” along with MDA, firefighting and rescue services, and the Israel Electric Company.

In 2024, Bar-David announced another illegal and politically-motivated strike in “protest” of the Netanyahu government (rather than against Hamas) after the heinous executions of six hostages in Gaza.

It should also be noted that one of the major entities whose representatives were involved in the case—Israel Railways—announced a closure of the Jerusalem train station during the Chareidi atzeres tefillah last week despite leaving it open during mass leftist protests.

Superintendent Yossi Gazit, head of Lahav 433’s Northern Fraud Division, discussed the case in an interview with Kan News: “The businessman is an insurance agent who saw the Histadrut as his personal domain. He made a lot of money off every person he recruited. He bribed public figures in various ways—luxury trips abroad, high-ranking appointments, champagne—all kinds of benefits. This case involves money laundering, bribery, and senior public servants who betrayed their positions. At first it seemed far-fetched, but as we dug deeper and used advanced technological tools, a sad and troubling picture emerged—and on a large scale.”

Lahav 433 Commander Meni Benjamin said, “This was a covert investigation that lasted about two years, during which suspicions of serious integrity violations emerged, allegedly committed by public officials and senior figures in the Israeli economy. The investigation so far paints a picture of quid pro quo relationships between businesspeople and various public-sector actors. The inquiry is ongoing, and additional suspects are expected to be questioned in the coming days. The case is being supervised by the State Attorney’s Office’s Economic Department.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)