The European Commission has been negotiating a secret agreement to share sensitive personal data with Israel’s police service, despite internal legal warnings that the deal could violate international law and put Palestinians at risk, according to a new report by civil rights group Statewatch published by Novara Media, Anadolu reports. The draft agreement would allow the exchange of biometric data, genetic information, location data, political views, and personal details, raising concerns about potential misuse against Palestinians.
EU faces criticism for secret police data talks with Israel
The European Commission has come under intense scrutiny following revelations that it has been negotiating a confidential agreement to share highly sensitive personal data with Israel’s police service, despite internal legal warnings that the arrangement could breach international law and endanger Palestinian lives, as reported by Aysu Biçer of Anadolu Agency. According to a new investigation by civil rights organisation Statewatch, published by Novara Media and covered by Middle East Monitor, the draft agreement—originally negotiated with the European police agency Europol—would permit the exchange of biometric data, genetic information, location tracking data, political views, and extensive personal details between EU and Israeli authorities.
Critical research indicates the negotiations have advanced despite a 2022 ruling by the Council of the EU’s Legal Service which deemed the proposal legally untenable, warning that the agreement risks legitimising Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories and would undermine the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, as documented in the Statewatch report cited by Novara Media.
Scope of data sharing under draft agreement
The proposed arrangement represents a significant expansion from a narrower 2018 working agreement between Europol and Israel, which explicitly excluded the sharing of personal data and any application in occupied territories, according to reporting by Middle East Monitor. The new draft text, however, would facilitate the transfer of what European law classifies as the most sensitive categories of personal information.
As reported by Haintz Media, Article 5 of the leaked agreement permits the exchange of special data categories including ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, genetic and biometric data, health information, and data concerning sexual life. The agreement explicitly names not only Israel’s national police but also the Israel Security Agency—commonly known as Shin Bet, the country’s internal intelligence service—as authorised recipients of this data, according to the analysis published by Haintz Media.
Legal warnings and international law concerns
The Council of the EU’s Legal Service, the union’s own internal legal advisory body, declared the agreement incompatible with both EU law and international law, demanding the removal of its central clause, yet the European Commission continued negotiations regardless, as reported by Haintz Media. The 2022 legal opinion warned that the agreement risks legitimising Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian territories and would undermine the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, according to the Statewatch report covered by Middle East Monitor and Anadolu Agency.
Douwe Korff, a legal scholar affiliated with Yale University, described the commission’s position as “deeply concerning,” pointing to the risk of sharing sensitive information with a state “credibly accused of genocide and other crimes,” as quoted by Middle East Monitor. Since October 2023, an Israeli military campaign has killed 73,389 Palestinians and injured 174,266 others according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, as noted in the Middle East Monitor report.
Risks to Palestinians and occupied territories
Concerns have been raised about the potential misuse of data collected by EU police missions operating in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip city of Rafah, with experts warning that if handed to Israeli authorities, the information could feed into existing military surveillance systems used against the Palestinian population, as reported by Middle East Monitor and Anadolu Agency.
“The data transferred via the agreement could be used as intelligence to support decisions to attack and kill Palestinians,”
legal expert Eitan Diamond told Novara Media, adding that
“the EU would run the risk of arbitrarily depriving people of their freedom and subjecting them to systematic ill-treatment under hellish conditions in detention,”
as quoted by Middle East Monitor.
Palestinian lawyer Raji Sourani condemned the talks, telling Novara Media that
“the intended cooperation is rooted in the racist colonial mentality of Europe, and turns against us Palestinians, the victims of genocide,”
according to Middle East Monitor.
Territorial exceptions and loopholes
While the draft text attempted to exclude the use of shared data in occupied territories, it contained broad exceptions that critics argue effectively nullify this safeguard, as reported by Middle East Monitor and Anadolu Agency. As analysed by Haintz Media, Article 32 states the agreement applies “in accordance with European Union policy” and does not cover territories that came under Israeli administration after 5 June 1967—namely the West Bank, East Jerusalem, the Golan Heights, and the Gaza Strip.
However, the same article permits “as an exception” the use of European data in these very territories in two cases: in situations of “imminent danger to life” or with prior authorisation from Europol, according to Haintz Media’s analysis of the leaked documents. European legal experts called these exceptions far too vague, as noted by Middle East Monitor.
Furthermore, under Article 8 of the agreement, no prior authorisation from Europol is required if the receiving Israeli body is itself listed as a competent authority under Annex II of the deal, according to Haintz Media, creating an additional pathway for data to flow into occupied territories without meaningful oversight.
Broader Europol data reform context
The Israel data negotiations emerge amid wider controversy over European Commission proposals to expand Europol’s data processing powers, with Europe’s data protection watchdog warning of “serious risks” to privacy, as reported by Politico Europe and Brussels Times. The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) published Opinion 18/2026 on 13 August 2026, concluding that the Commission’s proposal would allow Europol to process personal data—including photographs, fingerprints, and other biometric identifiers—on individuals with no established criminal connection, for an unspecified and potentially indefinite period, without adequate independent oversight, according to Tech Times and the EDPS opinion.
The EDPS said it is “particularly concerned” about the risks to the right to personal data protection if Europol is given broader scope to process personal data on individuals with no established links to criminal investigations or proceedings, as reported by Brussels Times. The proposals would allow Europol to retain data on large numbers of individuals with no established connection to criminal activity for an “extensive and unspecified” period, with the draft in its current form not providing sufficient and effective safeguards in such situations, according to Brussels Times.
Timeline and current status
The negotiations build on the 2018 arrangement and have progressed despite the 2022 legal service ruling, with Statewatch and EUobserver publishing leaked documents about the agreement on 10 August 2026, as reported by Haintz Media. On 11 August 2026, the Council adopted a decision extending the mandate of EUPOL COPPS and EUBAM Rafah until 30 September 2026, according to the European Commission’s audiovisual service.
The European Commission put forward its draft regulation to amend Europol’s rules on 24 June 2026, with the EDPS opinion following on 13 August 2026, as documented by Brussels Times and the EDPS. The story gained wider circulation on 15 August 2026 through reporting by Anadolu Agency, Middle East Monitor, and other outlets.
