International
Israeli Attorney General Unveils Charges Against Netanyahu
Israel’s attorney general indicted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on corruption charges on Thursday, raising more uncertainty over who will ultimately lead a country mired in political chaos after two inconclusive elections this year.
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit announced the decision in a statement. The charges included bribery, breach of trust and fraud.
Netanyahu, who has denied wrongdoing in three corruption cases, is under no legal obligation to resign after being charged. He is due to make a statement at 2030 GMT.
Here’s a look at the other cases concerning the prime minister:
Lavish Gifts
Police recommended indicting Netanyahu over accepting nearly $300,000 in gifts from Hollywood mogul Arnon Milchan and Australian billionaire James Packer.
Police say that in return for jewelry, expensive cigars and champagne, Netanyahu operated on Milchan’s behalf on U.S. visa matters, tried to legislate a generous tax break for him and sought to promote his interests in the Israeli media market.
Police have not commented on what Packer, who reportedly sought Israeli residency status for tax purposes, may have received, and Netanyahu has said all he received were gifts from friends. Longtime aide Ari Harow is a state witness in this case. The charges include fraud and breach of trust.
Media Meddling
Police have also recommended indicting Netanyahu for offering a newspaper publisher legislation that would weaken his paper’s main rival in return for more favorable coverage.
Netanyahu reportedly was recorded asking Arnon Mozes, the publisher of the Yediot Ahronot daily, for positive coverage in exchange for helping to weaken Israel Hayom, a free pro-Netanyahu newspaper that had cut into Yediot’s business.
Israel Hayom is financed by Netanyahu’s American billionaire friend Sheldon Adelson and largely serves as the prime minister’s mouthpiece. Netanyahu has noted that a proposed law to weaken Israel Hayom never passed and that he had even dissolved his coalition and called a new election in 2015 because of his opposition to the proposal. Harow is a state witness in this case, too.
According to TV reports based on recently leaked police investigations, Adelson’s wife also testified that Sara Netanyahu exerted pressure on her to provide gifts and favorable media coverage. The charges include fraud and breach of trust.
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