Against Making the Law Allowing Warentless Searches for Cameras Permanent

Photo: © Sunda35 | Dreamstime.com

On May 27, 2026, ACRI submitted comments on a memorandum by the Ministry of Justice proposing to make permanent the temporary provision allowing searches of a home or other premises without a warrant for the purpose of locating documentation or a camera that may serve as evidence of a serious crime or weapons offenses. The temporary provision, enacted in 2023, allows a police officer, under two circumstances, to conduct a search of a home or other premises without a judicial warrant: searches for weapons or weapon parts, and searches for cameras. The memorandum proposes making the camera-search provision permanent.

In ACRI's position paper, Attorney Nitsan Ilani notes that this is an infringement upon a range of constitutional rights, particularly the right to privacy and the right to equality (since it is used primarily against Arab society). Data from the police and the State Attorney’s Office indicate a sharp increase in the use of warrantless searches, alongside a sharp decline in the number of cameras seized. The data also show that among the indictments filed, the proportion of cases in which a search had been conducted was very low. Under these circumstances, the data do not provide a sufficient factual basis for turning the temporary provision into permanent legislation.

In ACRI's view:

• The proposed bill memorandum should not be advanced, and the temporary provision and the authority to conduct warrantless searches for the purpose of locating cameras should be repealed immediately;

• At the very least, the current temporary provision regarding searches for the purpose of locating cameras should be extended for an additional year, during which the facts regarding this issue should be thoroughly examined, including the sharp increase in the use of warrantless search powers, the decline in camera seizures, and the low proportion of indictments involving warrantless searches;

• The reporting obligation established by law should also be expanded to require reporting on the number of indictments based on documentation seized in searches, in order to enable the examination of the actual effectiveness of the temporary provision.

  
  

ACRI's position, May 27, 2026 (Heb)

The position paper was written with the assistance of legal intern Saly May.