Overview
- Nick Kolyohin was escorted off the government aircraft at Ben Gurion Airport shortly before departure for Washington.
- The Prime Minister’s Office said security authorities did not approve his participation for security reasons and declined to provide details.
- The Shin Bet stated it is responsible for minimizing risks to the prime minister and would not discuss reasons for individual clearance decisions.
- Al-Monitor reports Kolyohin contributes to RT, and he has worked for Channel 13 and Xinhua and previously served as a spokesperson in Netanyahu’s office from 2011 to 2012.
- Kolyohin told Israel’s public broadcaster Kan that a Shin Bet agent said his connections needed to be checked and he claimed the move sought to portray him as a Russian agent.