BENJAMIN NETANYAHU has vowed to stay on as prime minister after the police concluded that there was sufficient evidence to indict him for bribery, fraud and breach of trust in two separate corruption cases.“I will continue to lead Israel responsibly and faithfully for as long as you, the citizens of Israel, choose me to lead you,” he said soon after the police published their conclusions on February 13. “I am certain that at the next elections, which will be held on schedule, I will earn your trust again, with God's help.”
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, after consultations with the State Attorney’s Office, will now have to decide whether to accept the police recommendations and indict Netanyahu, who is not legally required to resign, even if he is charged. The process is expected to take many months.
In a live television address, Netanyahu said there was “no basis” for the police investigations.
“I feel a deep obligation to continue to lead Israel in a way that will ensure our future,” he said, claiming some 15 probes have been opened against him, in order to “topple him from power.”
“This time things will end without anything. These recommendations have no place in a democratic state.”
The first investigation – dubbed “Case 1000” – centers on gifts Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, received from Israeli-born Hollywood producer Arnon Milchan and other wealthy benefactors, including Australian resort owner James Packer. The gifts received by the Netanyahus, such as cigars, champagne and jewelry, were granted for about a decade and reached a total of 1 million shekels.
The police also recommended that Milchan be charged with bribery. READ MORE
