A bill that would give the justice minister effective control over the Department for Internal Police Investigations (DIPI) — the body authorized to probe alleged police wrongdoing in Israel — was approved in its first reading in the Knesset plenum on Monday.

The legislation would remove the department from under the authority of professional prosecutors and set it up as an “independent” agency within the Justice Ministry, according to Justice Minister Yariv Levin.

The bill would also see the director of DIPI appointed by a five-member committee, with the justice minister having control over the appointment of three members and input on a fourth. Currently, the director is appointed by a professional committee of the Civil Service Commission.

“The legislation is a central component of the [legal] reforms that will guarantee the equality of all before the law,” Levin contended, following the approval of the bill in the first of three readings.

“The current situation, in which DIPI is........

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