Israel Charges Reservist, Civilian Over Bets Using Classified Information

The State Prosecutor's Office indicted a military reservist and a civilian on Feb. 12, 2026 for allegedly using classified military information to place bets on the Polymarket prediction platform, authorities said.

The Defence Ministry, Shin Bet and the police said in a joint statement that the suspects were arrested after an investigation that found bets placed in June 2025 and that "no operational harm was caused in this specific incident," according to the statement.

The Israel Defense Forces called the acts "a severe ethical failure and a clear crossing of a red line," officials said, while lawyers Ran Cohen Rochverger and Naor Alon Sosnosky representing the reservist said in a statement they dispute the indictment and cited a broad gag order.

Kan reported earlier that the bets placed in June 2025 yielded roughly $150,000 in winnings, and Polymarket data showed some foreign-policy markets attracted large sums, including one market with the equivalent of $239 million in bets, officials and platform data indicate.

The indictment on charges of "serious security offenses," bribery and obstruction will proceed under a gag order that limits public disclosure, and the IDF said it will tighten procedures across units as prosecutors pursue the case.