Inspector-General Finds 'No Legal Or Propriety Issues' Of NZ Spying For Israel

Wednesday, 9 October 2024, 5:36 pm
Article: RNZ

The spy agency watchdog has rejected a call for an inquiry into whether New Zealand spying is helping Israel's war in Gaza, but is not ruling out one in future.

Three lawyers asked the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security Brendan Horsley for an inquiry last month on the grounds GCSB and SIS may be aiding international crimes.

But Horsley said he had already reviewed how the agencies assess human rights risks in their information sharing, which "provide reasonable safeguards".

His ongoing tracking of this had found no legal or propriety issues, "for any intelligence sharing that could relate to current international conflicts, including the situation in Israel, Gaza, Yemen, Lebanon, and the wider Middle East".

He did not want to commit his office's "modest resources" to review activity around fast-changing armed conflicts, but would continue the tracking instead.

"I intend to continue this work and it will inform my thinking on whether and when an inquiry might be required," Horsley said in a two-page letter to the lawyers.

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