24 may 2020
While the premier alleges AG prosecuted him on trumped-up charges to escape criminal probe on his own misconduct, Mandelblit says prosecution is motivated by protecting the rule of law
Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit responded to attacks launched by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against him, the judicial system, and the state prosecution at the opening of his corruption trial on Sunday.
"The prosecution will conduct a criminal proceeding in this case as it would in any other – in a professional manner and within the walls of the court," Mandelblit said in a statement released after the adjournment of the opening session of Netanyahu's trial.
"We will not be cowed by attempts to attach suspicion to our motivation, which remains to protect the rule of law. These attempts must be condemned," the attorney general said.
Netanyahu alleged the criminal charges against him for felonies bribery, fraud, and breach of trust were part of collusion to oust him of office and subvert the will of the voter.
“Elements in the police and State Prosecutor’s Office banded together with left-wing journalists… to fabricate baseless cases against me,” the premier said before the opening of his trial. “The goal is to oust a strong right-wing prime minister and to banish the right-wing camp from the leadership of the country for many years.”
Netanyahu directed a personal attack at the attorney general, alleging that Mandelblit had been pressured to prosecute the prime minister in order to avoid a criminal probe into his own conduct while he served as head of the Military Prosecution.
"What is he hiding?" Netanyahu asked speaking to journalists before his trial.
Mandelblit was alleged to have been involved in 2012 in an illicit attempt by then-Chief of Staff and now-Justice Minister Gabi Ashkenazi to thwart the candidacy of current-Education Minister Yoav Galant as IDF chief of staff.
Netanyahu's trial will resume on July 19 after his lawyers requested sufficient time to study more evidence provided to them by the prosecution.
Netanyahu is on trial along with the publisher of Yedioth Ahronoth, Arnon Moses, and Media mogul Shaul Elovitch and his wife.
Netanyahu lashes out at justice system as criminal trial gets underway
Israel's first sitting PM to stand trial claims the charges against him are attempt to subvert the will of the people and unseat the leader of the right-wing in cooperation with the leftist media, police and state prosecution
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday launched a tirade against the nation's justice system as his long-awaited corruption trial got underway, accusing police and prosecutors of conspiring to "depose" him.
"What is on trial today is the attempt to subvert the will of the people and topple me and the right-wing," he said.
Netanyahu's comments opened what is sure to be a tumultuous period for Israel as he becomes the country's first sitting prime minister ever to go on trial.
Hundreds of protesters calling him the "Crime Minister" demonstrated outside his official residence, while hundreds of supporters, including leading members of his Likud party, rallied in support of him at the courthouse.
Netanyahu faces charges of fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in a series of corruption cases stemming from ties to wealthy friends. He is accused of accepting lavish gifts and offering to grant favors to powerful media moguls in exchange for favorable coverage of him and his family.
He denies the charges, which come after years of scandals swirling around the family.
Netanyahu entered the Jerusalem courtroom wearing a blue surgical mask, in line with public health restriction due to the coronavirus pandemic. He stood and talked to his lawyers, refusing to sit until TV cameras left the room.
As the proceedings began, the lawyers and judges also wore masks, with the three-judge panel sitting behind a glass divider.
In a hint of what could lie ahead, his lawyers said they would need two to three months to respond to the arraignment, and said they needed additional funds to add to their defense's legal team. Netanyahu sat silently.
When he arrived at the courthouse, Netanyahu revived his claims that he is the victim of a deep state-type conspiracy by media, police, prosecutors, and judges out to oust him.
"The objective is to depose a strong, right-wing prime minister, and thus remove the nationalist camp from the leadership of the country for many years," he said.
He said police and prosecutors had conspired to "tailor" a case against him and said the evidence was "contaminated" and exaggerated.
He called for the court proceedings to be broadcast live on TV to ensure "full transparency."
"While the media continues to deal with nonsense, with these false, trumped-up cases, I will continue to lead the state of Israel and deal with issues that really matter to you," he said, including to resuscitate the economy and "continue to save the lives of thousands of Israelis ahead of the possibility of a second wave of coronavirus."
Critics have said that Netanyahu's arguments have undermined Israel's court system and risk deeper damage to the country's democratic institutions.
Netanyahu's fitness for office was the key issue in three inconclusive elections over the past year. After vowing never to sit with an indicted prime minister, Netanyahu's challenger, Benny Gantz, agreed in March to form a power-sharing coalition with his rival.
Avi Nissenkorn, the country's new justice minister and member of Gantz's Blue & White Party, defended the legal system before Netanyahu arrived in court and after his statements.
Israel "is blessed with a quality justice system without bias," Nissenkorn wrote on Twitter. "I have no doubt that the judicial process will be managed in a matter-of-fact and fair fashion."
“Like every citizen, the prime minister also has the presumption of innocence and I am certain the legal system will carry out a just trial,” Gantz posted on Twitter. “I would like to emphasize that my colleagues and I have full faith in the legal system and law enforcement.
Netanyahu was forced to attend Sunday's hearing at the Jerusalem district court, after his request to have his lawyers represent him instead was rejected.
The dramatic scene came just days after the long-serving leader swore in his new government, breaking more than a year of political stalemate following three inconclusive elections.
Netanyahu held his first Cabinet meeting with the new government just hours before heading to court. Neither he nor any of his ministers addressed the looming trial but the country's outgoing religious affairs minister wished Netanyahu that "God will bring the truth out" at his trial.
Netanyahu and his allies have spent months lashing out the country's law enforcement system, and the charges against him have deeply divided the nation.
Ahead of the trial, two sets of protests and counter-protests gathered outside the courthouse and the prime minister's official residence in Jerusalem.
Dozens of Netanyahu supporters outside the court in east Jerusalem wore masks with the prime minister's face and held posters lambasting the attorney general who indicted him.
"We won't allow an image of Netanyahu being humiliated," said Ran Carmi Buzaglo, one of the protesters.
"The only reason that they forced him to come here, even though the law allows him to be absent, is to show an image of him in the defendant's chair."
Across town, several hundred anti-Netanyahu demonstrators gathered outside his residence wearing face masks and t-shirts with the words "Crime Minister" and bearing posters calling for his resignation. They faced off across police barricades with the prime minister's backers.
Several of Netanyahu's Likud Cabinet ministers, including the newly appointed internal security minister who oversees the police, came to the court to back him.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid accused them of fomenting violence and trying to intimidate the judges. "Netanyahu is trying to drag us into a civil war to save himself from the trial," he told Ynet earlier Sunday.
Netanyahu's court appearance Sunday caps a three-year investigation. It also comes after more than a year of political turmoil, with three inconclusive elections - each seen as a referendum on Netanyahu - finally ending last month with the power-sharing deal with Gantz.
As part of their deal, Netanyahu will remain prime minister for the next 18 months, and alternative prime minister for the 18 months after, and will not be legally required to step down during what is expected to be a lengthy trial.
Netanyahu's proceedings were supposed to begin in March but were delayed by his then-justice minister who issued restrictions on the courts amid the coronavirus crisis.
Arriving for trial, Netanyahu slams ‘slanderous and delusional’ charges
PM also calls for the trial to be broadcast live; Earlier during a cabinet meeting, neither PM nor his ministers addressed the corruption trial, set to begin at 2pm; 'I hope the justices will do justice,' said Regev, who also arrived at Jerusalem's courthouse to back Netanyahu
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed the corruption charges against him as "slanderous and delusional" as he entered the Jerusalem courtoom on Sunday, to hear the arraignment against him.
Netanyahu along with his entourage arrived at the Jerusalem District Court close to 2:30 pm, after his request to have his lawyers represent him instead was rejected. Netanyahu's co-defendants Shaul Elovitch and Arnon Mozes, Ynet publisher, also arrived at the courthouse for the opening hearing.
"They've sewn slanderous and delusional cases," said the prime minister in a statement shortly after arriving at the courthouse. "The objective is to topple a strong prime minister from the rightist camp and thus to remove the right-wing from leadership for many years."
He called for the court proceedings to be broadcast live on TV to ensure "full transparency ... I stand before you with a straight back and head raised high," he said.
"I want the public to know the whole truth and therefore I demand from the court complete transparency. Let it all be broadcast live, uncensored and unedited."
Medial outlets and large crowds of pro and anti-Netanyahu protesters began gathering outside the court, hours before the opening hearing.
Meir Dahan, 52, from Yavne, was one of the first to arrive outside the courthouse. “The accused from right-wing bloc is sitting on the defendants’ bench,” he said. “He wins elections one after the other, but his values do not match the values of the left, they need to overthrow our leader,” he added.
“The entire right-wing camp is sitting on the defendants' bench and as a defendant, I arrived at the courtroom.”
In addition, several of Netanyahu's Likud party ministers, including the newly appointed Internal Security Minister Amir Ohana and Transportation Minister Miri Regev, arrived to back him.
“The people had their say at the ballot box,” said Regev. “I expect the judges not to fall into the trap set up by the media. I believe in the prime minister. I really hope the justices will do justice.”
The dramatic scene comes just days after the long-serving leader swore in his new government, breaking more than a year of political stalemate following three inconclusive elections.
Earlier, Netanyahu held his first cabinet meeting with the new government just hours before heading to court. Neither he nor any of his ministers addressed the looming trial but the country's outgoing religious affairs minister wished Netanyahu that "God will bring the truth out" at his trial.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid accused them of fomenting violence and trying to intimidate the judges. "Netanyahu is trying to drag us into a civil war to save himself from trial," he told Ynet.
Netanyahh's proceedings were supposed to begin in March, but were delayed by his justice minister who issued restrictions on the courts amid the coronavirus crisis.
He faces charges of fraud, breach of trust, and accepting bribes in a series of corruption cases stemming from ties to wealthy friends. He is accused of accepting lavish gifts and offering to grant favors to powerful media moguls in exchange for favorable coverage of him and his family.
He denies the charges and has lashed out at the media, police, prosecution and courts of forging a conspiracy to oust him. It comes after years of scandals swirling around the family.
Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit responded to attacks launched by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against him, the judicial system, and the state prosecution at the opening of his corruption trial on Sunday.
"The prosecution will conduct a criminal proceeding in this case as it would in any other – in a professional manner and within the walls of the court," Mandelblit said in a statement released after the adjournment of the opening session of Netanyahu's trial.
"We will not be cowed by attempts to attach suspicion to our motivation, which remains to protect the rule of law. These attempts must be condemned," the attorney general said.
Netanyahu alleged the criminal charges against him for felonies bribery, fraud, and breach of trust were part of collusion to oust him of office and subvert the will of the voter.
“Elements in the police and State Prosecutor’s Office banded together with left-wing journalists… to fabricate baseless cases against me,” the premier said before the opening of his trial. “The goal is to oust a strong right-wing prime minister and to banish the right-wing camp from the leadership of the country for many years.”
Netanyahu directed a personal attack at the attorney general, alleging that Mandelblit had been pressured to prosecute the prime minister in order to avoid a criminal probe into his own conduct while he served as head of the Military Prosecution.
"What is he hiding?" Netanyahu asked speaking to journalists before his trial.
Mandelblit was alleged to have been involved in 2012 in an illicit attempt by then-Chief of Staff and now-Justice Minister Gabi Ashkenazi to thwart the candidacy of current-Education Minister Yoav Galant as IDF chief of staff.
Netanyahu's trial will resume on July 19 after his lawyers requested sufficient time to study more evidence provided to them by the prosecution.
Netanyahu is on trial along with the publisher of Yedioth Ahronoth, Arnon Moses, and Media mogul Shaul Elovitch and his wife.
Netanyahu lashes out at justice system as criminal trial gets underway
Israel's first sitting PM to stand trial claims the charges against him are attempt to subvert the will of the people and unseat the leader of the right-wing in cooperation with the leftist media, police and state prosecution
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday launched a tirade against the nation's justice system as his long-awaited corruption trial got underway, accusing police and prosecutors of conspiring to "depose" him.
"What is on trial today is the attempt to subvert the will of the people and topple me and the right-wing," he said.
Netanyahu's comments opened what is sure to be a tumultuous period for Israel as he becomes the country's first sitting prime minister ever to go on trial.
Hundreds of protesters calling him the "Crime Minister" demonstrated outside his official residence, while hundreds of supporters, including leading members of his Likud party, rallied in support of him at the courthouse.
Netanyahu faces charges of fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in a series of corruption cases stemming from ties to wealthy friends. He is accused of accepting lavish gifts and offering to grant favors to powerful media moguls in exchange for favorable coverage of him and his family.
He denies the charges, which come after years of scandals swirling around the family.
Netanyahu entered the Jerusalem courtroom wearing a blue surgical mask, in line with public health restriction due to the coronavirus pandemic. He stood and talked to his lawyers, refusing to sit until TV cameras left the room.
As the proceedings began, the lawyers and judges also wore masks, with the three-judge panel sitting behind a glass divider.
In a hint of what could lie ahead, his lawyers said they would need two to three months to respond to the arraignment, and said they needed additional funds to add to their defense's legal team. Netanyahu sat silently.
When he arrived at the courthouse, Netanyahu revived his claims that he is the victim of a deep state-type conspiracy by media, police, prosecutors, and judges out to oust him.
"The objective is to depose a strong, right-wing prime minister, and thus remove the nationalist camp from the leadership of the country for many years," he said.
He said police and prosecutors had conspired to "tailor" a case against him and said the evidence was "contaminated" and exaggerated.
He called for the court proceedings to be broadcast live on TV to ensure "full transparency."
"While the media continues to deal with nonsense, with these false, trumped-up cases, I will continue to lead the state of Israel and deal with issues that really matter to you," he said, including to resuscitate the economy and "continue to save the lives of thousands of Israelis ahead of the possibility of a second wave of coronavirus."
Critics have said that Netanyahu's arguments have undermined Israel's court system and risk deeper damage to the country's democratic institutions.
Netanyahu's fitness for office was the key issue in three inconclusive elections over the past year. After vowing never to sit with an indicted prime minister, Netanyahu's challenger, Benny Gantz, agreed in March to form a power-sharing coalition with his rival.
Avi Nissenkorn, the country's new justice minister and member of Gantz's Blue & White Party, defended the legal system before Netanyahu arrived in court and after his statements.
Israel "is blessed with a quality justice system without bias," Nissenkorn wrote on Twitter. "I have no doubt that the judicial process will be managed in a matter-of-fact and fair fashion."
“Like every citizen, the prime minister also has the presumption of innocence and I am certain the legal system will carry out a just trial,” Gantz posted on Twitter. “I would like to emphasize that my colleagues and I have full faith in the legal system and law enforcement.
Netanyahu was forced to attend Sunday's hearing at the Jerusalem district court, after his request to have his lawyers represent him instead was rejected.
The dramatic scene came just days after the long-serving leader swore in his new government, breaking more than a year of political stalemate following three inconclusive elections.
Netanyahu held his first Cabinet meeting with the new government just hours before heading to court. Neither he nor any of his ministers addressed the looming trial but the country's outgoing religious affairs minister wished Netanyahu that "God will bring the truth out" at his trial.
Netanyahu and his allies have spent months lashing out the country's law enforcement system, and the charges against him have deeply divided the nation.
Ahead of the trial, two sets of protests and counter-protests gathered outside the courthouse and the prime minister's official residence in Jerusalem.
Dozens of Netanyahu supporters outside the court in east Jerusalem wore masks with the prime minister's face and held posters lambasting the attorney general who indicted him.
"We won't allow an image of Netanyahu being humiliated," said Ran Carmi Buzaglo, one of the protesters.
"The only reason that they forced him to come here, even though the law allows him to be absent, is to show an image of him in the defendant's chair."
Across town, several hundred anti-Netanyahu demonstrators gathered outside his residence wearing face masks and t-shirts with the words "Crime Minister" and bearing posters calling for his resignation. They faced off across police barricades with the prime minister's backers.
Several of Netanyahu's Likud Cabinet ministers, including the newly appointed internal security minister who oversees the police, came to the court to back him.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid accused them of fomenting violence and trying to intimidate the judges. "Netanyahu is trying to drag us into a civil war to save himself from the trial," he told Ynet earlier Sunday.
Netanyahu's court appearance Sunday caps a three-year investigation. It also comes after more than a year of political turmoil, with three inconclusive elections - each seen as a referendum on Netanyahu - finally ending last month with the power-sharing deal with Gantz.
As part of their deal, Netanyahu will remain prime minister for the next 18 months, and alternative prime minister for the 18 months after, and will not be legally required to step down during what is expected to be a lengthy trial.
Netanyahu's proceedings were supposed to begin in March but were delayed by his then-justice minister who issued restrictions on the courts amid the coronavirus crisis.
Arriving for trial, Netanyahu slams ‘slanderous and delusional’ charges
PM also calls for the trial to be broadcast live; Earlier during a cabinet meeting, neither PM nor his ministers addressed the corruption trial, set to begin at 2pm; 'I hope the justices will do justice,' said Regev, who also arrived at Jerusalem's courthouse to back Netanyahu
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed the corruption charges against him as "slanderous and delusional" as he entered the Jerusalem courtoom on Sunday, to hear the arraignment against him.
Netanyahu along with his entourage arrived at the Jerusalem District Court close to 2:30 pm, after his request to have his lawyers represent him instead was rejected. Netanyahu's co-defendants Shaul Elovitch and Arnon Mozes, Ynet publisher, also arrived at the courthouse for the opening hearing.
"They've sewn slanderous and delusional cases," said the prime minister in a statement shortly after arriving at the courthouse. "The objective is to topple a strong prime minister from the rightist camp and thus to remove the right-wing from leadership for many years."
He called for the court proceedings to be broadcast live on TV to ensure "full transparency ... I stand before you with a straight back and head raised high," he said.
"I want the public to know the whole truth and therefore I demand from the court complete transparency. Let it all be broadcast live, uncensored and unedited."
Medial outlets and large crowds of pro and anti-Netanyahu protesters began gathering outside the court, hours before the opening hearing.
Meir Dahan, 52, from Yavne, was one of the first to arrive outside the courthouse. “The accused from right-wing bloc is sitting on the defendants’ bench,” he said. “He wins elections one after the other, but his values do not match the values of the left, they need to overthrow our leader,” he added.
“The entire right-wing camp is sitting on the defendants' bench and as a defendant, I arrived at the courtroom.”
In addition, several of Netanyahu's Likud party ministers, including the newly appointed Internal Security Minister Amir Ohana and Transportation Minister Miri Regev, arrived to back him.
“The people had their say at the ballot box,” said Regev. “I expect the judges not to fall into the trap set up by the media. I believe in the prime minister. I really hope the justices will do justice.”
The dramatic scene comes just days after the long-serving leader swore in his new government, breaking more than a year of political stalemate following three inconclusive elections.
Earlier, Netanyahu held his first cabinet meeting with the new government just hours before heading to court. Neither he nor any of his ministers addressed the looming trial but the country's outgoing religious affairs minister wished Netanyahu that "God will bring the truth out" at his trial.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid accused them of fomenting violence and trying to intimidate the judges. "Netanyahu is trying to drag us into a civil war to save himself from trial," he told Ynet.
Netanyahh's proceedings were supposed to begin in March, but were delayed by his justice minister who issued restrictions on the courts amid the coronavirus crisis.
He faces charges of fraud, breach of trust, and accepting bribes in a series of corruption cases stemming from ties to wealthy friends. He is accused of accepting lavish gifts and offering to grant favors to powerful media moguls in exchange for favorable coverage of him and his family.
He denies the charges and has lashed out at the media, police, prosecution and courts of forging a conspiracy to oust him. It comes after years of scandals swirling around the family.
Two of the three-person panel in the past handled several major political corruption cases, including former PM Ehud Olmert's trial in 2014 and Likud MK Tzachi Hanagbi's trial in 2010
As Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu goes to court for corruption charges on Sunday, becoming the first premier in Israel's history to stand trial while in office, he will for the first time face the three judges who will ultimately decide his fate.
A specialist in criminal law and corruption cases, she chairs the trio of judges.
Her official CV does not give her date of birth but says she finished high school in 1976.
Graduating from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1981, she worked in a law firm before joining the state prosecutor's office.
She became a judge in the Jerusalem magistrates court in 1994 and in 2012 she was appointed to the Jerusalem district court.
Considered tough on graft, she was on the panel of judges that in 2014 sentenced former prime minister Ehud Olmert to prison for corruption on a series of charges, including bribes taken during the construction of the Holyland real estate mega-project in Jerusalem when he was mayor of the city.
Born in 1964, the law graduate also studied at the Hebrew University and is likewise considered a hardliner on corruption.
Shaham notably stood out in 2010 during the trial of Tzachi Hanegbi, a member of Netanyahu's Likud party who was accused of breach of trust in a political appointments case while he was minister of the environment.
In that case Shaham went against the other judges in recommending Hanegbi be convicted for corruption, highlighting the "values we teach our children" and the "kind of society in which we want to live".
Hanegbi was ultimately acquitted and has been appointed a minister in Netanyahu's office in the country's new government.
Unlike his two colleagues, he has handled few corruption cases.
Born in 1960, Bar-Am also studied at the Hebrew University, graduating in 1990.
He became first a lawyer and then a judge at the lower court in the south of the country from 2000.
As Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu goes to court for corruption charges on Sunday, becoming the first premier in Israel's history to stand trial while in office, he will for the first time face the three judges who will ultimately decide his fate.
A specialist in criminal law and corruption cases, she chairs the trio of judges.
Her official CV does not give her date of birth but says she finished high school in 1976.
Graduating from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1981, she worked in a law firm before joining the state prosecutor's office.
She became a judge in the Jerusalem magistrates court in 1994 and in 2012 she was appointed to the Jerusalem district court.
Considered tough on graft, she was on the panel of judges that in 2014 sentenced former prime minister Ehud Olmert to prison for corruption on a series of charges, including bribes taken during the construction of the Holyland real estate mega-project in Jerusalem when he was mayor of the city.
Born in 1964, the law graduate also studied at the Hebrew University and is likewise considered a hardliner on corruption.
Shaham notably stood out in 2010 during the trial of Tzachi Hanegbi, a member of Netanyahu's Likud party who was accused of breach of trust in a political appointments case while he was minister of the environment.
In that case Shaham went against the other judges in recommending Hanegbi be convicted for corruption, highlighting the "values we teach our children" and the "kind of society in which we want to live".
Hanegbi was ultimately acquitted and has been appointed a minister in Netanyahu's office in the country's new government.
Unlike his two colleagues, he has handled few corruption cases.
Born in 1960, Bar-Am also studied at the Hebrew University, graduating in 1990.
He became first a lawyer and then a judge at the lower court in the south of the country from 2000.
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