Netanyahu names national security adviser as new chief emissary
Meir Ben-Shabbat to replace Yitzchak Molcho, under investigation for corruption. PM: ‘When extent of Molcho’s work is known, Israel’s citizens will be greatly appreciative’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday appointed National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat as his chief diplomatic emissary and negotiator, replacing longtime confidant Itzhak Molcho who has been implicated as a suspect in a corruption investigation.
Ben-Shabbat will enter his new post in January of 2018.
In a statement Netanyahu expressed “deep gratitude and appreciation” towards Molcho “for carrying out his duties with a rare combination of talent, experience and a deep and extensive knowledge of the issues he dealt with.”
“When the full extent of Itzhak Molcho’s work becomes public knowledge, Israel’s citizens will be greatly appreciative of it,” he said.
In November Molcho was named as a suspect in the investigation into suspected corruption in Israel’s purchase of submarines from a German shipbuilder.
Molcho, along with his legal partner David Shimron, Netanyahu’s cousin and personal attorney, was detained by the Israel Police for questioning and faced two marathon days of interrogation.
Investigators suspect that state officials were paid bribes to influence a decision to buy submarines and patrol boats from German shipbuilder ThyssenKrupp, despite opposition from the Defense Ministry.
Police suspect that Molcho tried to push the submarine deal during his diplomatic trips abroad, while Shimron sought to promote the interests of the German shipbuilders within Israel.
Molcho resigned from his position as Netanyahu’s chief negotiator, a position he held since 2006, two weeks before he was outed as a criminal suspect.
Netanyahu himself has not been named as a suspect in the case, though he remains under criminal investigation in two other corruption probes.
Ben-Shabbat, a former senior official in the Shin Bet security service, only became the new national security adviser in August, and was officially approved by the cabinet in November.
Netanyahu hailed Ben-Shabbat at the time for his “sharpness of mind, his rich experience, the clarity in which he presents matters… he doesn’t whitewash, he states his opinion in the clearest manner, bluntly.”
Ben-Shabbat served in the Shin Bet since January 1989. His focus was Hamas and the Gaza Strip, directing much of the service’s activities against the terrorist group over the past 20 years. His position as head of the service’s southern district was comparable to that of a military general.
Ben-Shabbat personally led the Shin Bet’s efforts in Gaza during the 2008-2009 Operation Cast Lead campaign, according to the Prime Minister’s Office. The 51-year-old father of four also led the security service’s Cyber Directorate and its National Directorate for Thwarting Terror and Espionage.
There was no immediate word on who would replace Ben-Shabbat as national security adviser.
Raoul Wootliff contributed to this report.
