Police set to interrogate Netanyahu on Monday evening

Police were scheduled Monday to interview Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about suspicions that he accepted valuable gifts from two businessmen, after a graft probe against him gave way to a full-blown investigation in recent days.

The interrogation session will take place at the Prime Minister’s Residence on Balfour Street, Jerusalem at 7 p.m., police said.

Investigators were only able to arrange an interview with the prime minister after having failed for several days to secure a meeting, Channel 2 reported Sunday.

The prime minister, who had denied any wrongdoing, is being investigated over allegations he accepted a “string of valuable gifts” from at least two businessmen during his time in office. Police have refused to comment on reports that one of the two businessmen is World Jewish Congress President Ron Lauder, who is among the 50 people said to have already testified in the probe. Netanyahu reportedly intends to give investigators as much time as they need to complete the interview.

Sources close to Netanyahu were adamant Monday that the prime minister had done no wrong, and linked the investigation to efforts to oust him from power.

MK David Amsalem (Likud) told Army Radio that media “eagerness” over the investigations were threatening Israel’s democratic foundations.

“There is a motivation to remove the right from power,” charged Amsalem. “We need to take away any motivation other than that pertaining to the investigation itself. There is a basic democratic principle, that the people chose someone to lead the country. That is the most important principle and it takes precedence over all others.”

“There is a problem with the method, the conduct, the righteousness and all this purism,” he added. “And we are forgetting that there is a country to be managed.”

Police have collected a great deal of “well-founded” material relating to the suspicions, TV reports have said, including from witnesses very close to the prime minister. Among the 50 people who have already testified is Lauder, Channel 2 reported.

Previous coverage has said one of the businessmen is based abroad but has interests in Israel and the second is Israeli.

Reports emerged last week that Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit had approved a full criminal investigation into the prime minister.

Some of the alleged valuable gifts were also given to members of Netanyahu’s family, TV reports said last week, and it is believed the gifts were not reported to the relevant authorities. Channel 10 reported on Friday that Yair Netanyahu, the prime minister’s son, would be among those asked to give testimony.

According to a Channel 10 report from Saturday night, the central suspicions against Netanyahu were breach of trust and unlawfully accepting gifts. As yet, the television report said, there were no suspicions of bribery.

Netanyahu on Friday rejected the accusations as “baseless,” saying “this will come to nothing, because there is nothing.”