(05.03.2023)
The trial and the coup are now simultaneously underway, but while the first is lumbering along, the second is galloping forward. The hearings in the Jerusalem District Court will resume only after Passover. Until the judges return from their hiatus, the wings of the High Court of Justice might be clipped, the Judicial Appointments Committee might be under full control of the politicians, or Israel might be in the throes of a historic constitutional crisis.
(14.02.2018)
The police announcement Tuesday – that the investigations into two cases involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been completed – came 13 months after Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit decided that a “preliminary examination” of the allegations, which itself took six months, should become full-fledged criminal investigations.
With careful consideration, it is plausible to suggest that Milchan‘s decision may have been influenced by the judges‘ proposal to withdraw the bribery charge in Case 4000, which was presented just before his testimony. The witness perceived this case to overshadow his own involvement, often remarking that the magnitude of „hundreds of millions of dollars“ cannot be compared to indulgences in cigars and champagne. This positioning allowed Milchan to assume a supporting role in the unfolding narrative, but an unexpected turn of events thrust him into the spotlight. Being fluent in the language of power, it appears that Milchan recognized Netanyahu‘s resurgent influence and chose not to risk challenging him.
Milchan had also introduced Mozes to Australian businessman James Packer, who „really liked each other.“ Netanyahu had also asked Milchan to look into laying the groundwork for news mogul Rupert Murdoch, who the prime minister felt had business and political interests aligned with the Netanyahu administration.
Under Case 2000, Netanyahu is accused of having engaged in fraud and breach of trust for meeting with Mozes about advancing legislation to cripple his news competitor in exchange for positive coverage.
He said he had instructed his aides to give the Netanyahus “whatever they want” and was assured by the prime minister that there was nothing illegal going on.
For this saga to end now, one of two things has to happen: Either the prosecution has to withdraw the indictment, or Netanyahu has to admit to some of the charges and leave office immediately. But the prime minister is now breathing easy and praising the judges whom he previously suspected of being leftists. And Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, who views the court’s position as a colossal mistake, is currently determined to go all the way, including to the Supreme Court.
The indictment accuses Netanyahu of using his influential perch to assist Milchan to secure a U.S. visa extension by drawing on his diplomatic contacts, among them former Secretary of State John Kerry. Prosecutors also accuse Netanyahu of working to push legislation that would have granted Milchan millions in tax breaks.
Mr. Milchan, 78, who produced blockbusters like “Pretty Woman,” “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” and “Bohemian Rhapsody,” also worked for years for Israeli intelligence as a weapons procurer. His colorful life and relationship with Mr. Netanyahu has helped turned the Case 1000 trial into a showcase of the nexus of money, power and influence in Israel.
Hollywood mogul Arnon Milchan, a key witness in one of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption cases, is set to testify at the premier’s corruption trial via video link from Brighton, England, beginning on Sunday.
The film producer is a witness in Case 1000 — one of three in which Netanyahu faces charges — involving suspicions that the premier illicitly accepted gifts including cigars and champagne from Milchan and another billionaire, James Packer.
According to the report, during a routine hearing at the Jerusalem District Court on Tuesday, the judges engaged in a fifteen-minute discussion with the State Prosecutor‘s Office and Netanyahu‘s defense team and the other defendants, Shaul and Iris Elovich.
The judges reportedly emphasized that „the good of the state requires a settlement.“
The head of the Yesh Atid party testifies as a prosecution witness in „Case 1000“, in which Netanyahu is accused of fraud and breach of trust for favors he allegedly received from businessmen Arnon Milchan and James Packer.
Lapid is expected to be asked about meetings he held with Milchan while he served as finance minister in Netanyahu‘s government, as well as appeals he received from the prime minister about the promotion of a law that would benefit the businessman.
Milchan didn’t see his relationship with the Netanyahus as true friendship. In conversations with other politicians, he often imitated the couple and mocked their demands. Asked by police what would have happened had he not supplied the requested goods, he replied, “I imagine I would have been a less wanted guest” at the prime minister’s residence.
The Netanyahus, in contrast, described the Hollywood producer as one of their best friends. The prime minister said he spoke with Milchan more often than with his own brother, while Sara termed him a “close friend.”
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara will reportedly need to decide whether the Netanyahu trial should be transferred out of the Jerusalem District Court, which is currently handling it.
Discussions have been taking place behind closed doors in front of a District Court judge with no minutes recorded.
The prosecutor in the “lavish gifts” corruption trial of former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the court Tuesday that although the prosecution doesn’t know the whereabouts of James Packer, an Australian businessman who gave Netanyahu gifts, it has no intention of forgoing the testimony of the state’s key witness.
n response to a question from the head of the panel of judges that is hearing the case in Jerusalem, Alon Gildin said: “The prosecution hasn’t given up on anyone.”
(13.02.2019)
On a summer evening about a decade ago, an unusual group entered the spacious Israeli beach house home of Israeli Hollywood producer Arnon Milchan. His guest at his home in Beit Yanai, to which he had made a special trip from his home in Los Angeles especially for the meeting, was Meir Dagan, the director at the time of Israel’s Mossad espionage agency.
Also in attendance was a Russian oligarch close to President Vladimir Putin and the oligarch’s young daughter. They were joined by several others as well.
(…)
While he was head of the Mossad, Dagan viewed the development of close ties with Russia, with Putin and with his close circle of associates as a strategic goal, and he accompanied the Israeli prime ministers under whom he served — Ariel Sharon, Ehud Olmert and Netanyahu — in their meetings with the president of Russia.
Hadas Klein, personal assistant to Arnon Milchan, testified on Monday that former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu requested and received 3,000 shekels (about $900) in cash from tycoon Arnon Milchan, and that she bought his wife Sara a gift for 15,000 shekels with Milchan’s funds, also in cash. These details do not appear in the indictment, and it is the first time a claim has been presented that Netanyahu received cash from Milchan.
(April 6, 2016)
In a far-reaching interview aired Monday with Israel‘s Channel 2 TV‘s flagship investigative program „Uvda,“ Milchan detailed a series of clandestine affairs in which he was involved and particularly how he helped purchase technologies Israel allegedly needed to operate nuclear bombs.
„I did it for my country and I‘m proud of it,“ said Milchan, who ran a successful fertilizer company in Israel before making it big in Hollywood.
(06.09.2022)
In a 2013 interview with the Hebrew media, Milchan acknowledged that he had worked for the Israel Bureau of Scientific Relations, which worked to secure scientific and technical know-how for secret defense programs.
That interview led US authorities to grant him merely a one-year visa extension instead of the 10-year visas he had previously received. Milchan sought Netanyahu’s help in obtaining a new 10-year visa, and the former prime minister arranged for the Hollywood mogul to speak directly to then-US secretary of state John Kerry on the issue.
Klein was the personal assistant to billionaires Arnon Milchan and James Packer. She is testifying at the trial in Case 1000 – the lavish gifts affair – in which Netanyahu is charged with fraud and breach of trust during the time he served as prime minister. In her testimony, Klein told how Milchan and Packer sent expensive cigars and champagne to Netanyahu and his wife Sara for years through her, at the Netanyahus’ request. Her cross-examination by Amit Hadas, Netanyahu’s lawyer, will continue on September 6, after the end of the courts summer recess.
It seems that there is no better, no more characteristic demonstration of the huge gap between the aggressively marketed image and what really occupied Netanyahu in his years at the helm. He is obviously not the only politician who likes the proximity of tycoons. Ariel Sharon, Ehud Barak, Shimon Peres and Ehud Olmert also liked being close to rich people and the pampering they could provide.
Hadas Klein told Jerusalem District Court that Packer „wanted to donate $3 million to the Peres Center for Peace and had promised Shimon Peres he would do it.” The center was founded by the former president and prime minister in 1996, in order to further peace and cooperation between Arabs and Jews and Israelis and Palestinians.
Klein is testifying in Case 1000, in which Netanyahu is accused of improperly receiving expensive gifts in exchange for favors. Both Packer and Milchan are at the center of the affair.
„One Friday, I received a call from Arnon and he said to me, ‚Speak to Yossi Cohen and tell him that Sara likes him,'“ Klein continued. „‚Tell Yossi what Sara says about him.‘ Arnon told him that he spoke with the Netanyahus. And then Arnon met with [then-Mossad chief] Tamir Pardo on Friday afternoon. He told Pardo that he spoke to the Netanyahus and they both approved this appointment, and Tamir told Milchan: ‘You did something bad for the State of Israel.’”
For some unclear reason, former attorney-general Avichai Mandelblit decided to indict Netanyahu in this case only for fraud and breach of trust, and not bribery, and the gifts for Sara Netanyahu were not included in the indictment, because the Prime Minister’s wife is not a civil servant, even though – according to Klein – Bibi was perfectly aware of their existence, as he had told her that all of Sarah requests should be complied with.
Israel-American billionaire Arnon Milchan lambasted Israeli right-wing attacks on his aide Hadas Klein, a key witness in the trial of Benjamin Netanyahu who filed a police complaint on Thursday against a journalist for harassment.
Klein has this week been giving testimony in Case 1000, in which Netanyahu is charged with fraud and breach of trust for allegedly accepting luxury gifts from Milchan and Packer worth NIS 691,776 ($200,000).
Request comes after information provided by Arnon Milchan’s personal assistant regarding expansive jewelry and clothes allegedly given to former PM at his wife’s behest
In nearly every discussion these days about a possible plea bargain with the defendant Benjamin Netanyahu, supporters of a compromise repeat the same main argument: The deal with the former prime minister is necessary in order to undermine his attack on the justice system. This argument was made most prominently by former Supreme Court President Aharon Barak, who explained that he supported the deal because it would “take the sting out of the demolition of the court system.”
Talks on a possible plea deal for Netanyahu in his criminal trial have progressed in recent weeks, with a potential solution found to the major sticking point left between his team and state prosecutors, Hebrew-language media reports said over the weekend. Netanyahu has been resisting a deal primarily due to Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit’s demand that his actions be designated as carrying “moral turpitude” — legally barring him from public service for seven years.
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit is set to retire at the end of January. With with no permanent successor yet determined, it‘s unclear if a new attorney general would offer the same deal if Netanyahu does not accept it within the next two weeks.
Mandelblit could see a plea bargain as favorable to end Netanyahu‘s attacks on the justice system.
The corruption trial of Benjamin Netanyahu took a dramatic turn Monday with the arrival of Nir Hefetz – former close aide and confidant, spin doctor, and, now, key state witness against his former boss
key prosecution witness in former Benjamin Netanyahu’s trial began testifying on Monday, one week later than planned, telling the court that the former prime minister was heavily fixated on media coverage of himself.
Nir Hefetz, a former media adviser to Netanyahu and his family, will testify in all three of the corruption cases against the former prime minister. His testimony is therefore expected to continue for quite some time.
Cohen was asked about his relationship with Packer following a Haaretz investigation, which revealed he had received a $20,000 gift for his daughter‘s wedding, though the figure cited in ‚Uvda‘ was lower.
The recently retired Mossad chief, who is a close confidant of outgoing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, also asserted that „everything was done in consultation and with the approval of the attorney general“ and that Packer wanted to give „much more.“
Early last week, the PM appeared to be on the way out, with his rivals about to announce a coalition. Now they have only a few days left, and much reduced chances
(29.04.2021)
James Packer wasn‘t just another billionaire who developed relationships with Israel‘s elite. The Australian media and casino tycoon with the troubled psyche mingled with those in the most secret circles in the country. Benjamin Netanyahu exploited him to the hilt – and he wasn‘t the only one who did so.
(today)
The second group of witnesses are to testify in the so-called Case 1000 – the illicit gifts affair. First up will be businessman Arnon Milchan, who according to the indictment gave Netanyahu gifts valued at hundreds of thousands of shekels. The prosecution recently announced that it had moved up the testimony of the witnesses in this case, following a report in Haaretz that the prosecutors feared the prime minister could exert undue influence on Milchan.
(17.02.2021)
According to Channel 13 news, Netanyahu phoned Milchan on consecutive days last year around May or June, apparently around the time of the Shavuot holiday, telling him how much he and his wife Sara love the Hollywood producer and his family.
The calls came after Netanyahu pressured Milchan to release lawyer Boaz Ben Tzur so he could instead represent the prime minister, the network said.
(04.12.2019)
Several prominent U.S. billionaires are on the list of over 300 people who could potentially be called as witnesses at Prime Minister Benjamin’s Netanyahu’s upcoming corruption trial.
(04.12.2019)
Several prominent U.S. billionaires are on the list of over 300 people who could potentially be called as witnesses at Prime Minister Benjamin’s Netanyahu’s upcoming corruption trial.
(14.02.2018)
The police announcement Tuesday – that the investigations into two cases involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been completed – came 13 months after Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit decided that a “preliminary examination” of the allegations, which itself took six months, should become full-fledged criminal investigations.
A year ago, Netanyahu waived his parliamentary immunity after he realized that in the Knesset elected in September 2019, he had no chance of receiving immunity. But the prime minister’s lawyers recently claimed in court that he never waived his right to parliamentary immunity, saying that the Knesset’s immunity proceedings were flawed.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz‘s Kahol Lavan party said Sunday that it has agreed to postpone the Tuesday deadline to pass Israel‘s 2020 state budget by one week, in a move that could give it more time to negotiate a deal with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s Likud to avoid what would be a fourth election cycle in two years.
Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz has agreed to curb Justice Minister Avi Nissenkorn‘s powers, sources said, in bid to stave off election.
In return, Gantz hopes to cement the rotation agreement for the premiership with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is upheld.
It was unclear whether the High Court could ever strike down a quasi-constitutional basic law, he said. In any event, if it were possible, it would need to be a far more extreme law, implying something criminal or actively undermining democracy, he added.
Furthermore, Mandelblit rejected the notion that the coalition was abusing or ignoring the will of the voter by forming coalitions they had vowed not to form.
(30.11.2020)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is preparing to ask the Knesset again for immunity from prosecution in his corruption cases, based on his lawyers’ argument that the criminal investigation against him was flawed and should be reconsidered.
In the past month, the prime minister has told associates that he is weighing the benefits of such a move against the possible damage it could do to his image in public opinion.
The three-judge panel headed by Judge Rivka Friedman-Feldman is expected to focus in Sunday’s hearing on Netanyahu‘s claim that he was protected by parliamentary immunity at the time of the filing of the indictments against him. The panel is expected to rule on the issue in the next few weeks because there is no dispute over the facts on this issue.
Mr. Netanyahu was not named as a suspect in an earlier police investigation of the purchase of submarines and missile boats from Germany that caught up several of his close associates. The planned commission of inquiry lacks legal authority. It may summon any witness to testify but cannot compel anybody to appear before it.
The submarine affair has become a central element in the protests against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where demonstrators have carried inflatable submarines inscribed with slogans like “S.S. Investigation.” Protesters are calling for a commission of inquiry into the affair, as well as calling on Netanyahu to step down in light of his corruption charges.
: Representatives of the ruling party (in the spirit of the commander, the commander’s wife and their son) long ago crossed the red line that separates the parliamentary freedom to criticize and exercise oversight of the branches of government, and sowing fear, stoking unbridled incitement and making explicit threats against those who displease them.
Zohar allgedly threatened Mendelblit in October, saying that if the attorney general did not resign from his position and drop the three pending corruption indictments against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, incriminating recordings of Mendelblit would be leaked to the public.
The police interrogation of Zohar was authorized by the state prosecutor‘s office.
So we must take seriously the report in Israel Hayom, the Netanyahu family’s private journal, saying that the prime minister is willing to give up the one-year budget – and consequently an election – in exchange for appointing the police commissioner and attorney general of his choice.
To understand what the crime syndicate that has taken over this country is after, one must first understand the goals of the man who leads it. The criminal defendant bunkered down in Balfour Street has three goals: to remain prime minister, to cancel his trial and to prevent the truth from coming out about the so-called steel shares and submarines affairs (which could result in charges that are much more serious than those in his current trial).
The Israeli premier reportedly wants immediate elections in case the High Court of Justice disqualifies him from serving as alternate prime minister, after his rotation with Gantz commences in November 2021, due to the indictments filed against him.
His second demand is to dissolve a public committee slated to appoint the state prosecutor and police commissioner and transfer the procedure to the government instead.
The report suggested that Gantz’s Blue and White party will find it „difficult“ to approve Netanyahu’s first request.
The bill, brought forward by Kahol Lavan‘s former political allies Yesh Atid, is aimed at preventing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from running for office in the next election. Netanyahu currently stands trial for suspected bribery, fraud and breach of trust.
The prime minister seeks to receive outside funding from his cousin Nathan Milikowsky as well as from Partrich. After convening last month, the panel asked the attorney general for his position, as Partrich is listed as a witness in one of the cases against Netanyahu.
(26.06.2020)
Demonstration part of ongoing ‘black flag’ anti-corruption protests against the prime minister, who is standing trial in a series of graft cases
Since 1999 Netanyahu has managed to exhaust an entire political camp. His battles with the old elites was first and foremost a war of attrition. The noise that this compressor emits is only getting louder. It seems as if we haven’t been able to sleep properly for 20 years – it hasn’t given us a moment’s peace. This isn’t a compressor. This is a force of nature.
Another 10 years of Netanyahu in power is starting to look like a fairly realistic scenario.
In response to the new development, a statement released on behalf of the prime minister called the new investigation threat “extortion.”
“The anonymous threats by police investigators to open another futile investigation against the prime minister… is an attempt to silence none other than the prime minister of Israel,” the statement said. “These threats are a clear example of the sickness that must be corrected in order to secure Israel’s democracy.”
Kein israelischer Regierungschef ist länger im Amt als Benjamin Netanyahu. Heute schreibt er erneut Geschichte: Als erster amtierender Premier steht er vor Gericht. Die Anklage: Bestechlichkeit, Betrug und Untreue.
Every day that passes provides more proof of the twisted state of Israeli democracy, in which a defendant under criminal indictment leads the government and is a candidate to form the next one.
Israel Resilience party leader Benny Gantz will reportedly support a new law allowing incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to serve in the government despite multiple indictments against him, according to Hebrew media.
Current Israeli Parliament (Knesset) legislation bars elected officials from serving as government ministers while being charged with a crime.
The activists say they use the black flag, pinning them to the back of vehicles, to symbolize the danger a prime minister under indictment poses to Israeli democracy, according to The Times.
Netanyahu was indicted last year on three charges following a years-long corruption investigation, including breach of public trust, bribery, and fraud.
Benjamin Netanyahu‘s Likud party is projected to win a narrow lead over Benny Gantz‘s Kahol Lavan in next week‘s Israel election, according to two polls published Sunday by Channel 12 and Kan public broadcaster.
Netanyahu made his decision public after his chief political rival, Kahol Lavan leader Benny Gantz – who met with Trump on Monday but decided to skip the release of the peace plan in order to take part in the immunity debate – was already back in Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, hours before facing a likely defeat in the Israeli parliament, withdrew his request for official immunity from prosecution on corruption charges Tuesday, giving up a controversial gambit to shield himself from legal peril a month before a national election.
As Knesset Speaker, Yuli Edelstein has the authority to block the Knesset Arrangements Committee from meeting, thereby blocking the convening of the House Committee and preventing it from discussing the immunity request.
This is Edelstein’s most important test as an elected official: Will he be faithful to his position as Knesset speaker, or will he be faithful to the man who has decided to hold the country hostage?