Man indicted for making threats to attorney general

A man from the central Israel city of Petah Tikva was indicted Monday for threatening to harm Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, police said.

The Israel Police said in a statement that the 46-year-old man arrived several weeks ago to the vicinity of Mandelblit’s home, which is also in Petah Tikva, and threatened to come back and hurt him.

He was subsequently arrested and questioned under caution at the Lahav 433 special crimes unit.

The indictment was filed at the Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court, police said.

Mandelblit has for several years been the subject of threats and demonstrations from supporters of both the left and the right as he was deliberating whether to charge Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

For several years, weekly demonstrations near his home by opponents of Netanyahu protested his alleged foot-dragging in making a decision.

Since Mandelblit made the decision late last year to indict Netanyahu for fraud and breach of trust in three cases, as well as bribery in one of them, he has come under increasing fire from Netanyahu himself, his allies in the political arena, and his supporters.

The police statement did not detail the threats the man made to Mandelblit or what he was protesting.