Mandelblit Testifies on Scope of Netanyahu Investigation Approvals
The former attorney-general told the court that his initial authorization allowed investigators to question key witnesses without seeking further permission.
By Noah Dvorak ·
Former Israeli attorney-general Avichai Mandelblit returned to the Jerusalem District Court on Monday to continue his defense testimony in the trial of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The defense team is using Mandelblit's testimony to examine whether investigators acted within the specific limits of his prior approvals. Netanyahu’s lawyer, Amit Hadad, asked the former official to clarify exactly which investigative steps required his explicit consent and which were covered by his original authorization. Hadad focused on the preliminary examination that evolved into Case 1000, which involves alleged expensive gifts from businessmen Arnon Milchan and James Packer.
Hadad specifically questioned whether investigators exceeded their authority when they spoke with Hadas Klein, Milchan’s assistant, and Yonatan Hasson, Packer’s driver, about those gifts. Mandelblit responded that the questioning fell within his broader permission to examine suspicions that Netanyahu received substantial benefits from business figures. He argued that this general permission remained in force, meaning investigators did not need to return to him for approval of every individual action taken during the investigation.
Judge Moshe Bar-Am asked how investigators could distinguish between steps covered by that general authorization and those requiring additional consent. Mandelblit explained that the subject matter he initially approved set the boundaries, while any significant developments would have called for further consultation with his office.
On Sunday, Mandelblit provided details about a wiretapping operation involving Natan Eshel, a close confidant of the prime minister. He stated that he ordered police to stop listening to Eshel once he learned of the operation. Although investigators had secured a court warrant, Mandelblit argued that Eshel’s close involvement in Netanyahu’s personal and political affairs made the surveillance sensitive enough to warrant prior approval from the attorney-general’s office.
Netanyahu’s trial began in May 2020 and covers three separate cases involving alleged gifts and dealings with media owners. He faces charges of fraud and breach of trust in all three cases. In Case 4000, he also faces a bribery charge related to alleged regulatory benefits provided to Bezeq in exchange for intervention in news coverage on the Walla website. Netanyahu denies any wrongdoing in all counts.
Source: The Jerusalem Post
