Former MK Eitan Cabel testified Monday in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's trial at the Jerusalem District Court, appearing for the second time as a defense witness in Case 2000, the Netanyahu-Mozes conversations case. Netanyahu is charged with fraud and breach of trust, and Yediot Ahronoth publisher Noni Mozes is charged with offering and promising a bribe. According to the indictment, Mozes offered Netanyahu a bribe.
Cabel himself was questioned under caution during the investigation, but the case against him was closed. He was summoned to testify by Netanyahu's defense team, led by attorney Amit Hadad.
In 2014, Cabel, then a Labor MK, promoted the "Israel Hayom Law", a bill designed to restrict distribution of the free daily Israel Hayom, which was owned by Sheldon Adelson and generally supported Netanyahu. The bill passed a preliminary reading but was never completed.
At the same time, Mozes held recorded conversations with Netanyahu. According to the prosecution's position, Mozes proposed a deal to Netanyahu: more favorable coverage in Yediot Ahronoth in exchange for advancing a move that would harm Israel Hayom.
In the conversations between Netanyahu and Mozes, Cabel and his bill came up. Police suspected that Cabel was not just an MK acting on his own initiative against Israel Hayom, but that he had a connection with Mozes around the bill, and that the bill may have been advanced in coordination with Mozes.
Initially, Cabel gave police testimony as a witness, saying he did not know about the conversations between Netanyahu and Mozes and that he promoted the bill based on his own views about the media market. Later, police found material that raised questions about the extent of his relationship with Mozes, including dozens of calls and text messages, and in January 2018, Cabel was questioned under caution on suspicions of fraud and breach of trust or obstruction.
In a 2019 decision by the State Attorney, it was determined that there was a basis for indicting Netanyahu and Mozes in Case 2000, subject to a hearing, but it was recommended to close the case against MK Cabel.
According to Cabel's testimony, he worked to advance the bill and met several times with Noni Mozes, which he said was a standard practice in which an MK meets with media owners and journalists as part of his work. At the same time, he said that representatives of Israel Hayom offered him favorable coverage in an attempt to persuade him to drop the bill, an offer that he said was not perceived as a bribe but as part of a standard persuasion attempt.
