TV: Netanyahu will advance immunity law, deal with criminal charges later

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tells Likud officials he will advance a law to shield himself from prosecution while in office, according to Channel 12.

The prime minister is quoted as saying he’ll deal with the looming criminal charges after he retires, as a private citizen.

“The citizens of Israel deserve a full-time prime minister,” Netanyahu is quoted as telling his Likud associates. “After I finish my job, I’ll deal with the prosecution. The citizens of Israel knew what my status was and elected me [anyway]. If I thought about my own personal benefit I would deal with the court case as prime minister and not as a private citizen, but I understand that this is not in the benefit of the state.”

The contours of the planned so-called immunity bill are not immediately clear.

On Monday, the Haaretz daily reported that Netanyahu plans to promote a bill that would allow the government to overrule the High Court of Justice on administrative matters. If passed, the bill could safeguard the prime minister’s immunity from prosecution by permitting the annulment of any judicial decision that could rescind it.

Speculation has swirled that Netanyahu may use his newfound political strength in the wake of the April 9 elections to advance legislation that would grant him immunity from prosecution as long as he remains prime minister, or seek to utilize existing immunity provisions for the same purpose.

He has been reported to be considering conditioning entry to his new government on potential support for an immunity move or for a so-called French Law that would shelter a sitting prime minister from prosecution. Netanyahu has publicly given mixed signals about whether he will seek such legislation.

Current law already provides for any MK to obtain immunity by a majority vote in the Knesset House Committee and then in the Knesset plenum. Until 2005, MKs were automatically granted immunity from prosecution, and that immunity could be lifted by majority votes in the House Committee and plenum.

The prime minister is a suspect in three criminal probes, known as cases 1000, 2000 and 4000, in which investigators have recommended graft indictments, including bribery in one of the cases.