Israel suspicious of Chinese gift to minister 

Israel’s internal security agency, Shin Bet, raised suspicions on Tuesday that a gift from the Chinese Embassy to an Israeli minister was “bugged,” local media have reported. According to Haaretz, the cup was sent to Israel’s Science, Technology and Space Minister, Orit Farkash-Hacohen, and apparently set off an alarm during a routine security check.

A search was made of other government offices to see if similar cups had been sent to other officials. None were found.

Haaretz explained that security guards had been instructed to remain vigilant regarding gifts from embassies or foreign governments. The conclusion, in this case, was that the gift was not bugged.

Officials at the Chinese Embassy refuted the “baseless Israeli claims.” It said that offering gifts is the norm in China, and called for the media to withdraw all “false reports” immediately.

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