Netanyahu demands ‘solution’ to ‘adversarial’ AG as ministers call for her ouster
Lapid slams ‘threats’ against Baharav-Miara by PM, whose office then insists he is careful to follow his agreement not to meddle in legal appointments while on trial for corruption
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly ordered that a “solution” be found for Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara’s “adversarial” relationship with his government, as ministers railed against her office and called for her ouster Monday.
The Prime Minister’s Office later appeared to walk back the comments amid fears they might violate Netanyahu’s agreement to abstain from top legal appointments while he is on trial for corruption.
The prime minister’s comments, which were leaked to the media following a Monday morning cabinet meeting, underlined the long-simmering tensions between the attorney general and the government after Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs accused her office of putting itself above the government and leading the country to “total anarchy.”
During the discussion, Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi reportedly reiterated previous calls from himself and other coalition lawmakers that Baharav-Miara be fired. According to the Kan public broadcaster, Karhi suggested replacing her with Fuchs.
Netanyahu was said to respond that Baharav-Miara “is an adversarial attorney general.” He claimed that due to her political slants, she approved “illegal” measures advanced by the previous government, including a maritime agreement with Lebanon and various appointments.
Netanyahu said he had requested that Justice Minister Yariv Levin prepare a “solution” to the issue, according to the reports, potentially hinting at a move to oust her from her position or bypass her decisions.
Haaretz cited a senior legal source as saying Netanyahu’s decision to weigh in so directly on the conduct of the attorney general is a violation of the premier’s conflict of interest arrangement, drafted in 2020 by then-attorney general Avichai Mandelblit. The High Court had ordered Netanyahu to sign off on the arrangement in order to continue to serve as prime minister while on criminal trial for fraud, bribery and breach of trust.
In a statement after the premier’s comments were made public, the Prime Minister’s Office said Netanyahu “is careful to follow the conflict of interest arrangement that applies to him.”
The PMO said Netanyahu’s comments came after “harsh criticism from government ministers regarding [the attorney general’s conduct].”
“The prime minister clarifies that [Baharav-Miara’s office] is expected to assist the government in implementing the government’s decisions and promoting bills on its behalf, and not the other way around,” said the PMO.
Later Monday, addressing lawmakers from the Knesset plenum, Regional Cooperation Minister David Amsalem called on Netanyahu to fire the attorney general. There is “an elitist group” holding the “entire country” in a “stranglehold,” he charged, claiming that Baharav-Mirara’s and her deputy Gil Limon’s “entire job is to overthrow the government.”
Baharav-Miara has clashed with the current government several times over laws and decisions she has deemed to be illegal, while ministers have repeatedly called for her ouster. Opposition Leader Yair Lapid has charged that efforts to fire her would constitute a return to the government’s 2023 efforts to hobble the judiciary.
The cabinet discussion on the attorney general on Monday was said to begin after National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir vented over Baharav-Miara’s blocking of efforts to solve the issue of overcrowded prisons.
“She halts everything. Because of her, we have moved to work through private [Knesset members’] bills” instead of government regulation, Amsalem charged, according to the leaked quotes.
Lapid slammed Netanyahu over the “threats” against Baharav-Miara, asserting that they constitute “evidence that the government is returning to the [judicial overhaul] with all its might.”
“We will work to prevent her dismissal legally, publicly, and in every way,” Lapid said in a statement. “The attempts to replace her are part of Netanyahu’s and his government’s attempt to fundamentally destroy Israeli democracy during wartime.”
The Movement for Quality Government in Israel also condemned Netanyahu’s “threats” against Baharav-Miara, casting them as part of the government’s continued efforts to “weaken the law enforcement system.”
The group called on Netanyahu to withdraw his comments and for ministers to oppose any measure that would harm the attorney general’s position.
Earlier, Baharav-Miara’s deputy Limon accused Fuchs of acting “without authority” by ordering the treasury’s accountant general, Yali Rothenberg, to bring forward provisions of the daycare subsidies bill for the government’s approval, while threatening potential administrative sanctions against him if he didn’t comply.
The legislation, which was submitted last week and advanced to a Knesset vote on Sunday, aims to guarantee that the children of ultra-Orthodox men who are obligated to serve in the Israel Defense Forces, but have not done so, will continue to be eligible for state-funded daycare subsidies. The bill’s passage is a key political demand of the Haredi coalition parties Shas and United Torah Judaism.
The attorney general has said she opposes the bill being advanced by the government to maintain the daycare subsidies despite a ruling that deems them illegal if a parent doesn’t serve in the military while being legally required to do so.
Aside from battling Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul plans, which she has said would give the government virtually unrestrained power, the attorney general has also recently pushed back on efforts to extend blanket military service exemptions for ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students.
Limon said the order goes against the attorney general’s instructions, and that Fuchs lacked the authority to instruct the accountant general on how to act, especially when the order goes against the law.
“More than anything — you are not allowed to threaten a public official seeking to carry out their duties faithfully and act in accordance with the law,” Limon wrote.
In response, Fuchs accused the Attorney General’s Office of putting itself above the government.
“There is no such thing in Israeli law as an ‘attorney general instruction’ to not implement a cabinet decision,” Fuchs wrote. “The legal advisory is acting against the law… as if it were above the government, a sort of executive authority that everyone is subordinate to.
“Your oppositional conduct against the government since its inception is gradually expanding toward a constitutional crisis and total anarchy.”
