Prof. Cohen-Eliya: Netanyahu's election move "brilliant"

Professor Moshe Cohen-Eliya responded today (Thursday) to the dramatic letter sent by Elections Committee chairman Judge Solberg to Shin Bet chief Zini, in which he called for an investigation into suspected election bribery by foreign actors.

In his remarks, the professor wrote: "Netanyahu is leveraging the Qatari funding event to boost turnout in the Arab sector. The aim is to block the replacement of the Knesset speaker by painting the move as Qatari-backed and thereby delegitimizing it. Politically, a brilliant move."

Yisrael Beiteinu chairman MK Avigdor Liberman responded to Judge Solberg's letter and described it as an exceptionally severe event.

Liberman said: "Judge Solberg's letter is a dramatic and unprecedented event. I call on the law enforcement authorities to act quickly in order to get to the truth as soon as possible."

Earlier today, Elections Committee chairman Judge Noam Solhberg sent an official letter to Shin Bet chief David Zini, instructing him to open an investigation into suspected foreign funding and election bribery by foreign actors.

The letter comes after Zini presented Sohlberg with information described as "exceptional in its severity."

"It seems to me that given the fact that the suspicions concern foreign actors, there is an obligation to investigate them thoroughly, in order to preserve the purity of the Knesset elections and to prevent illegal activity aimed at harming the democratic order and to prevent subversion," the judge writes, without specifying which foreign actor interfered in the elections and allegedly bribed any of the parties.

Sohlberg then said, "I instruct you to do everything in your power to investigate these suspicions and to make use of the General Security Service framework in order to locate evidence to substantiate or refute the aforementioned suspicions. Only in this way can we ensure public confidence in the election process and the integrity of the democratic process."

Judge Solberg demands that the investigation findings be presented to him within a week, due to the timetables for counting the votes.