Report: Shin Bet Chief Meets French Intelligence Leaders on Terrorism

Shin Bet Director David Zini arrived in France on Monday and met his counterparts in the French security services, i24NEWS reports, citing a Kan report on Wednesday. The visit had been prearranged. According to the report, the talks covered techniques for dealing with radical Islam and terrorism.

Zini met senior officials from the General Directorate for Internal Security, known as the DGSI, and the Directorate-General for External Security, the DGSE. i24NEWS notes these are the French equivalents of the Shin Bet and the Mossad. The DGSI handles security inside France, and the DGSE handles intelligence abroad.

The timing was tense on both fronts. i24NEWS reports the French government has announced a crackdown on protests and riots that have gripped the country for the past few weeks and spread to many major cities, including Paris, Marseille and Lyon. At the same time, the report says, a diplomatic rift between Israel and France is growing as France weighs possible sanctions on Israeli settlements.

The meeting shows a familiar pattern. Governments may quarrel in public, but the professionals who guard against terrorism keep their lines open. With French cities under strain and radical Islam a shared concern, the Shin Bet chief's visit put Israel's hard-won experience on the table for France's own security services.