Mandelblit Moved Netanyahu Probe After Prosecutors Defied Him

Former Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit has said he removed the investigation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from the Jerusalem District Attorney's Office and gave it to the Tel Aviv District Attorney's Office for Taxation and Economic Affairs because prosecutors in Jerusalem acted against his instructions.

In remarks relayed by Amit Segal, Mandelblit described meetings where he turned down arguments raised by the Jerusalem prosecutors. He said they then tried to pursue those arguments anyway. His testimony is significant because it addresses the integrity of the investigative process that led to the charges against Netanyahu, a central issue in the trial.

"They come to meetings and present arguments, and I tell them not to pursue those directions. They try to move forward anyway, and I feel that there's an attempt here to steer things in directions I don't want to go. I felt uncomfortable with them," Mandelblit said.

Mandelblit took the stand as a defense witness in Netanyahu's trial at the Jerusalem District Court on Sunday. The hearing came just over two weeks before Israel's October 27 election.

On Monday, the second day of his testimony, Netanyahu's attorney Amit Hadad argued that investigators had taken steps "behind your back" before approval was given to investigate the prime minister in Case 4000. In that case, prosecutors allege that Netanyahu advanced regulatory measures benefiting Bezeq in exchange for favorable coverage on the Walla news site. Netanyahu denies wrongdoing.

Hadad asked whether approval for Case 4000 had already been granted in June 2017. Mandelblit replied: "According to the memo, it's logical that there wasn't." He also confirmed that he did not know some of the details Hadad put to him.

Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana attended Sunday's hearing. That evening, he wrote to President Isaac Herzog and called for an immediate decision on Netanyahu's pardon request. Ohana wrote that Mandelblit's testimony had shown him that the remaining charges rest on investigative actions taken without the former attorney general's knowledge or approval.