AG accuses Ben Gvir of witness intimidation, abuse of power for failing to promote cop involved in PM’s trial

In a stern letter to National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara implicates the far-right leader in witness intimidation and obstruction of justice over his refusal to promote a police officer involved in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption trial.

For more than a month, Ben Gvir blocked the promotion of Supt. Rinat Saban, a high-ranking officer in the police Investigations and Intelligence Division. The minister’s refusal to sign off on Saban’s promotion led to an overt clash with law enforcement officials last week.

In her letter, Baharav-Miara accuses the minister of factoring in political considerations in holding off on Saban’s promotion, calling his behavior “highly unusual and unprecedented compared to past police promotions.”

Baharav-Miara warns Ben Gvir in the letter that it was “not just inappropriate but also an abuse of power” for the minister to use his powers in a way that could deter “police officers… from handling criminal cases against government members or their associates, intimidate witnesses in such proceedings. and disrupt the proper procedure of criminal proceedings.”

She accuses Ben Gvir of “unlawful political interference in criminal proceedings” and adds that his behavior is a “blatant violation” of a legally binding agreement he came to with her in April.

Under the agreement, Ben Gvir committed to curbing his involvement in police promotions and operational decision making, and Baharav-Miara agreed to defend him in the High Court against petitions demanding the minister’s dismissal.

Earlier today, the attorney general said in a filing to the High Court that despite the agreement, Ben Gvir had continued to undermine police independence, which could merit his dismissal as national security minister.

Writing to Ben Gvir, Baharav-Miara says “these principles were intended precisely to prevent the kind of situations that are described above,” referring to Saban’s lack of promotion.

“A phenomenon such as this, whose damage to the rule of law is immensely severe, is unacceptable,” says the attorney general.

The letter adds that Ben Gvir already signed off on Saban’s promotion to the rank of chief superintendent in December 2024, conditional on her completing the police command and staff course. The police investigator completed the course in April 2025 — a month after she testified against Netanyahu in court — and Ben Gvir’s signature was once again required as a formality confirming her advancement in rank, Baharav-Miara says.

“Your required signature for the actual conferral of the rank is a formal act, stemming from custom, and is not necessary under the Police Ordinance. This custom cannot be misused as a means of arbitrarily withholding a promotion in rank,” writes the attorney general, demanding he sign off on Saban’s promotion without delay.

In addition to her testimony against Netanyahu in March, Saban also investigated the premier’s advisers Jonatan Urich and Ofer Golan on suspicion that they harassed Shlomo Filber, a state witness in Case 4000 — the most serious of the three cases against Netanyahu.

The premier is alleged in the case to have secured regulatory favors for telecommunications mogul chief Shaul Elovitch in exchange for positive press coverage from a news outlet he owned.