Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was formally charged with bribery, fraud and breach of trust on Tuesday, making him the first Israeli premier to be indicted while in office and sending Israel’s already stalemated political system into further disarray.
Israeli Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit capped almost three years of investigation and months of speculation by handing down a 63-page indictment against the country’s longest-serving prime minister and its centre of political gravity for the last decade.
The prosecution has accused the head of government in connection with three cases, known as Case 1,000, Case 2,000 and Case 3,000, the Ministry of Justice said in a statement.
In all three cases, Netanyahu has been accused of fraud and abuse of trust, and in addition in Case 4,000, he is alleged to have committed bribery, the most serious accusation that puts his position in question.
In October, the prime minister’s legal team spent four marathon days in front of prosecutors arguing that the charges should be reduced or dismissed, an effort that apparently had little effect.
During a news briefing, Mandelblit said, “I made this decision with a heavy heart but with a whole heart and a sense of commitment to the rule of law”.
“Law enforcement is not a discretionary matter. It is an obligation that is imposed on us. It is my duty to the citizens of Israel to ensure that they live in a country where no one is above the law and that suspicions of corruption are thoroughly investigated”, Mandelblit added.
On Thursday, in a combative address, Netanyahu called the indictment “a coup attempt” driven by a corrupt set of prosecutors.
He demanded that an independent body review the prosecution. “It’s time to investigate the investigators,” he further added.
“I give my life to our country. I fought for this country, I was injured for this country. I have been fighting for this country in recent years, both on the international stage and here in order to make us a global force. And I am very proud of our achievements,” Netanyahu said.
“This is a very difficult day for me and those who support me”, he added.
The indictments came down on the first day of an unparalleled phase in Israeli politics: a 21-day window in which any member of parliament can try to form a governing majority, including Netanyahu and his rival Benny Gantz, who both failed at that task in recent weeks. If no one succeeds, Israel would head back to national elections for the third time in a year.
Netanyahu was first elected as chairman of the Likud in 1993, serving in the opposition until 1996. He resigned from politics after being defeated in a general election in 1999, returning to lead the party in 2005. Since then he has consolidated his position in Likud, dividing and weakening his opponents and facing very few challenges over the years.