Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was on Thursday indicted of bribery, fraud and breach of trust by Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit, in connection with three separate cases dubbed Case 4000, Case 1000 and Case 2000.
However, Netanyahu has called the investigation a ‘witch-hunt’ and reportedly refuses to resign from his post, saying that there was no legal basis for him to do so.
Netanyahu is the first sitting prime minister to be charged with bribery. The Justice Ministry will now start the process of asking the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, to strip Netanyahu of his parliamentary immunity—a move Netanyahu can challenge within 30 days. Since the Knesset faces a political deadlock, this process may take some time.
The final indictment was delayed due to the two elections that were held in April and September, over fears that they may been seen as interfering in the country’s electoral process. This decision came a day after Netanyahu’s chief political rival, Benny Gantz, failed to build a governing coalition and left the floor open for anyone in the Knesset to try and attain a majority. President Reuven Rivlin had then asked parliamentarians to form a majority government within 21 days—or face an unprecedented third election.
The development adds to the intricacy of Israel’s post-election landscape, as Netanyahu’s hopes of forming a coalition government are stymied by potential coalition members who have stated that they would not serve under an indicted prime minister.
Of the three cases Netanyahu has been charged with, Case 1000 deals with allegations that he and his wife received expensive gifts including cigars and champagne from Hollywood producer Arnon Milchan as well as from Australian billionaire James Packer, with the police investigating a possible quid pro quo. For this allegation, Netanyahu has been charged with fraud and breach of trust.
Case 2000 has to do with allegations that he negotiated a deal with an Israeli newspaper, Yedioth Ahronoth, where he promised legislation to hurt their rival in exchange for favourable coverage. The charges for this are the same as for Case 1000—fraud and breach of trust.
Case 4000 also has to do with a quid pro quo type deal, with allegations that he aided Bezeq Telecom via regulatory decisions in exchange for favourable coverage. The charges for this case are bribery, fraud and breach of trust.
