Civil service czar and justice minister clash over acting state attorney posting

Justice Minister Amir Ohana rejected a demand Monday from Civil Service Commissioner Daniel Hershkowitz that he be consulted over the appointment of an acting state attorney, saying he would press on in the coming days with the temporary posting regardless.

The thorny issue of selecting an interim replacement for outgoing State Attorney Shai Nitzan, who ends his term on Monday, has also caused friction between Ohana and Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit.

Earlier in the day, Hershkowitz informed Ohana and Mandelblit that by law they must consult with him before appointing a state attorney.

“With the reaching of an agreement between both of you on a candidate, I will consider the candidate,” said Hershkowitz, a former minister with the right-wing Jewish Home party. “I very much hope that such an agreement will be soon presented.”

Ohana wrote back saying that he had already discussed the matter with Hershkowitz several times, including at two meetings, during which the names of all candidates were raised.

The obligation under law to consult with the commissioner was “fulfilled, and when deciding from among the candidates, none of them will be a stranger to you,” Ohana wrote. “My intention is to appoint one of these candidates.”

He also noted that he had discussed the candidates with Mandelblit, but that the attorney general’s consent “is not and cannot be a condition for the appointment.”

Ohana is expected to give his decision in the coming days, and until then, Mandelblit will take over the state attorney responsibilities.

The issue of a replacement has already set Mandelblit and Ohana on a collision course with the minister insisting that he will choose the interim state attorney. Mandelblit reportedly intends to have the final word on who gets the job.

Mandelblit has said in closed meetings that he will strongly oppose any appointment by Ohana that is unacceptable to him, and that he may take the matter to the High Court of Justice, multiple Hebrew-language news outlets reported, signaling that the two were likely headed for a clash.

Ohana has presented a list of five candidates to serve as interim state attorney instead of Nitzan. Four of the prospective replacements are opposed by Mandelblit.

Only Deputy State Attorney for Criminal Matters Shlomo Lemberger would be acceptable to Mandelblit, according to Hebrew media reports.

The others are Deputy Attorney General for Criminal Matters Raz Nizri, who has said he does not want the job; Central District Deputy Prosecutor Orly Ginsberg Ben-Ari; Dan Eldad, director of the State Attorney’s Office’s Economic Department; and Tel Aviv District Attorney Oshra Gez-Eisenstein.

The appointment is overshadowed by the corruption charges against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that were formulated by Nitzan and announced recently by Mandelblit, which caused Ohana, a Netanyahu loyalist, to launch a scathing attack on the state prosecutor’s office and other law enforcement bodies.

It is also affected by the current political crisis. Normally, a new state attorney is selected by a special committee appointed by the justice minister and headed by the attorney general. The latter is usually given freedom to choose a person they regard as worthy and with whom cooperation would be possible. However, Mandelblit has said that since Ohana is only serving in a caretaker government, he does not have the authority to form that committee. Instead, Ohana will appoint an acting state attorney.

Two rounds of elections in April and then September failed to produce a ruling coalition or unity government. The Knesset dissolved again last week and third elections were set for March 2.

After Mandelblit announced indictments against Netanyahu last month, the prime minister denounced the charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust as a “coup,” while Ohana attacked the state prosecution, for which he is responsible, saying that it acts unprofessionally and without oversight.

Last week, Nitzan said at a conference that the criticism of the justice establishment “is designed to destroy the system at its foundations.”