Israel police recommends PM Netanyahu be charged with bribery
- by Celia Watts
- in People
- — Dec 2, 2018
Israeli police have recommended indicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara for bribery and other offences, the third such recommendation against the premier in recent months.
Mr Netanyahu said in a statement that police recommendations against him have no legal basis.
While Netanyahu was questioned as a witness and not a suspect in the submarine case, the accusations against his lawyer and others in the investigation have only added to the pressure the prime minister is facing.
In the conversations, which became public through transcripts leaked in Israeli media, Netanyahu allegedly discusses limiting the circulation of Yedioth Ahronot's biggest competition in favor of more favorable coverage.
It's believed that Netanyahu fired Communications Ministry Director-General Avi Berger and hired his loyalist and ex-campaign manager Shlomo Filber in order to provide Elovitch and his companies special treatment.
It is claimed Netanyahu and his advisers supported regulations worth hundreds of millions of dollars to telecom company Bezeq. Other former employees have accused her of mistreatment, charges the Netanyahus have vehemently denied, and of excessive spending and charging the state for her private, expensive tastes.
Most of Netanyahu's coalition partners have said they will wait for a decision by the attorney-general before making any decisions about how to react to the allegations. They accuse the prime minister and Bezeq boss Shaul Elovitch, who they also recommend be charged, as having shared a "bribe-based relationship" which saw Mr Netanyahu and his associates intervene in news coverage on an nearly daily basis.
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It has also called upon the CBFC to re-examine the film and suspend its exhibition until the body's complaint is probed. It also alleged that it violated many sections of the Indian Penal Code, Mint reported , citing the statement.
They recommended Ms Sara Netanyahu face charges of bribery, fraud, breach of trust and obstruction of justice.
Police recommended that Bezeq's former chairman, Shaul Elovitch, who was forced to step down earlier this year, stand trial for giving bribes.
"The police recommendations regarding me and my wife don't surprise anyone", he said in a statement.
The Prime Minister's wife, Sara Netanyahu, was charged in July with fraud and breach of trust in a separate investigation, alleging misuse of state funds at the couple's official residence.
Mr Netanyahu held the government's communications portfolio until a year ago and oversaw regulation in the field.
The decision to indict the Prime Minister can only be made by the Attorney General, Avichai Mandelblit, who will now review the findings of the police investigation.
