State seeks ‘forgery’ probe after MK spoofs PM letter
Government asks AG to investigate Yoel Hasson after he photoshops Netanyahu’s resignation letter from ministry, posts on social media
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The government’s cabinet secretary Tuesday asked the attorney general to open a criminal probe into alleged forgery after an opposition MK posted a photoshopped resignation letter with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s signature on his social media accounts.
The fake resignation letter posted by Zionist Union MK Yoel Hasson appeared to be a revised version of a letter from the prime minister on Sunday in which Netanyahu announced his resignation from the Communications Ministry. “I hereby announce my resignation as communications minister” was changed to “I hereby announce my resignation as prime minister” in the version Hasson posted on his Facebook and Twitter accounts.
In his letter to Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, Cabinet Secretary Tzachi Braverman described the photoshopped document with Netanyahu’s signature as a “deliberate deception of the public without any purpose other than harming the standing of the prime minister,” while adding that the use of the prime minister’s signature in the letter “without a doubt” violated a 1977 law designating forgery as a criminal offense.
He also wrote that the fact the “forgery” was committed by a lawmaker “increases the severity of the act.”
למה רק מתיק התקשורת ? הנה @netanyahu סידרתי לך את זה, כל מה שנשאר זה רק לשלוח. pic.twitter.com/EDwmufo5ep
— יואל חסון ????????Yoel Hasson (@HassonYoel) February 20, 2017
The letter posted by Hasson was accompanied by the post: “why only the communications portfolio? Here @netanyahu I took care of this for you, all you have to do is send it.”
In response to Braverman’s request, Hasson wrote on his Facebook page that the cabinet secretary’s letter was an attempt by Netanyahu to distract from the ongoing criminal investigations against him.
“Of course Netanyahu understands that the end of his political [career] is closer than ever and therefore every joke on Twitter turns into a existential threat for him. Even a violent and brutal step like this from Netanyahu won’t stop me from working towards replacing” him as prime minister.
Hasson wrote that rather than “dealing with serious threats such as Iran, Hezbollah or Hamas, [Netanyahu] prefers to go head to head with a Twitter joke,” while also saying it was ironic that the prime minister is accusing him of forgery since Netanyahu “is the master of fake news and forgeries.”
By calling for Netanyahu to step down Hasson joined a chorus of opposition MKs in the past two months demanding the prime minister resign due to being a central suspect in two ongoing criminal investigations.
Case 1000 revolves around alleged illicit gifts given to Netanyahu and his family from billionaire benefactors, most notably hundreds of thousands of shekels’ worth of cigars and champagne said to have been given to the prime minister and his wife Sara by Israeli-born Hollywood producer Arnon Milchan.
Netanyahu and his wife are said to have denied that receiving the gifts constituted a criminal offense, claiming the value of the items was significantly lower than reported and that they were mere “trifles” exchanged between close friends.
Case 2000 is focused on an alleged clandestine quid pro quo deal made between Netanyahu and Yedioth Ahronoth publisher and owner Arnon “Noni” Mozes, in which the prime minister is said to have promised Mozes he would advance legislation to reduce the circulation of Yedioth’s main commercial rival, the freebie Israel Hayom, in exchange for friendlier coverage from Yedioth. No such deal was ever implemented. Netanyahu denies any wrongdoing.
Netanyahu’s decision to resign as communications minister, which went into effect on Tuesday, appeared to be largely connected to the ongoing investigations. It also came in response to a petition filed by opposition leader and Zionist Union chairman MK Isaac Herzog last month with the High Court of Justice demanding the prime minister be suspended from his position as communications minister, arguing the latest revelations from the criminal investigations into Netanyahu disqualify him from holding the post.
In its response to the High Court petition, the government said that since Netanyahu has now resigned, “the specific circumstances in the petition that relate to him serving as communications minister have now become irrelevant.”
Regional Cooperation Minister Tzachi Hanegbi, considered a confidant of the prime minister, was tapped to replace Netanyahu as communications minister.
Raoul Wootliff contributed to this report.
The Times of Israel Community.