Herzog reportedly tried to influence, shorten proceedings in Netanyahu graft case
Newspaper says president repeatedly attempted to push AG to reach plea deal with PM, grant his requests to delay testimony; Herzog’s office, Justice Ministry decline to comment
President Isaac Herzog attempted several times over the last two years to influence the proceedings in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s criminal trial, according to an investigative report published Thursday.
The exposé in the Haaretz daily said Herzog played a behind-the-scenes role in two separate attempts to have the case moved to mediation, which, if successful, could have shortened the lengthy legal proceedings and potentially allowed Netanyahu to reach a plea deal.
In the first instance, the newspaper reported that Herzog was involved in a 2023 attempt by the defense attorney to move the premier’s corruption case to mediation. The efforts fell through, however, after Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara came out against the idea, believing it could have been a tactic to buy time.
Citing an unnamed political source, the report said that Herzog tried to intervene due to his concerns over the government’s contentious judicial overhaul legislation and the security risks that it posed. As part of a conflict of interest arrangement, Netanyahu is barred from involvement in matters that could impact his ongoing trial on graft charges, including the planned overhaul of the judiciary, which Herzog reportedly lobbied Baharav-Miara to allow the premier to be involved in but was rebuffed.
The president again worked behind the scenes to push for mediation in early 2024, Haaretz said, but Baharav-Miara again turned down the request due to the terms Netanyahu’s legal team set for a plea deal.
The report added that Herzog also approached Baharav-Miara to talk about accepting Netanyahu’s various requests to delay the testimony in his corruption trial, due to the security situation.
Netanyahu’s testimony was indeed delayed several times before it finally began on December 10, 2024, although the report did not specify whether this was the result of Herzog’s intervention.
Again citing an unnamed source, Haaretz said the end goal of Herzog’s interventions was unclear, as sometimes it appeared that he was “trying to influence” the attorney general “after being approached by Netanyahu,” while at other times “it looks like he genuinely wants to bring the Netanyahu saga to an end.”
Both the President’s Office and the Justice Ministry declined to comment on the report.
Netanyahu, who is charged in three corruption cases, has been giving testimony in court since the trial resumed in December.
He faces charges of fraud and breach of trust in Case 1000 and Case 2000, and charges of bribery as well as fraud and breach of trust in Case 4000.
Case 1000 revolves around allegations that Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, received expensive gifts illicitly from Hollywood media mogul Arnon Milchan worth some NIS 700,000 and that Netanyahu violated conflict of interest laws when he provided Milchan with assistance in renewing his long-term US residency visa and sought to help him with tax issues.
In Case 2000, the prime minister is accused of fraud and breach of trust over his alleged attempt to reach a quid pro quo agreement with the publisher of the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper Arnon (Noni) Mozes, whereby Yedioth would give the prime minister more positive media coverage in exchange for legislation weakening its key rival, the Israel Hayom free sheet.
Case 4000, also known as the Bezeq-Walla case, is the most serious the prime minister faces, in which he is accused of authorizing regulatory decisions that financially benefited Bezeq telecommunications giant shareholder Shaul Elovitch by hundreds of millions of shekels. In return, Netanyahu allegedly received favorable media coverage from the Walla news site, which Elovitch also owned.
Netanyahu denies wrongdoing and claims without evidence that the charges were fabricated in a political coup led by the police and state prosecution.
Jeremy Sharon contributed to this report.
