Recommendation comes as Netanyahu facing political problems
The Israeli police have recommended that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s wife Sara stand trial on allegations of graft, following a police investigation into financial impropriety at the Prime Minister’s residence. The police, who gave their findings to the Jerusalem district attorney, also said there was sufficient evidence to indict electrician Avi Fahima, and the deputy director for operations at the Prime Minister’s office Ezra Saidoff.
The recommendation comes as Netanyahu is trying to expand his government by bringing the hardline Yisrael Beytenu into the coalition by making the party’s leader Avigdor Lieberman defense minister. That is being opposed by another coalition partner, the Jewish Home party, While Netanyahu is not named in the allegations of corruption, they could complicate the ongoing political machinations.
According to the police investigation, Sara Netanyahu used state funds to purchase furniture that was designated for their private home in the upscale city of Caesarea in northern Israel. The police said that Sara Netanyahu originally bought the furniture for the official residence in Jerusalem an then moved it to the home in Caesarea, while their older furniture was brought to the official Prime Minister’s residence.
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The allegations, originally published in a report by the State Comptroller last year also found that Sara Netanyahu called Avi Fahima, the electrician, to make repairs at taxpayer expense nearly every weekend over months, even though weekend repairs are significantly more expensive.
In December, the Netanyahus denied the allegations and said that “the claims against the prime minister’s wife are baseless and imaginary, and this will be clearly proven.”
It is not clear how much effect these latest allegations will have on Netanyahu’s image in Israel. The police are recommending indictments only against Sara Netanyahu, not against the Prime Minister.
“It fits well into modern politics of these days which are highly personalized and has to do with things that are not directly connected to politics,” Gideon Rahat, a senior associate at the Israel Democracy Institute told The Media Line.
Rahat said that Netanyahu could say that he did not know of Sara Netanyahu’s actions, and that he had nothing to do with it.
“It all depends on his relationship with his wife,” Rahat said with a laugh. “Will he support her or not?”
Sara Netanyahu has complained that she has been vilified by the Israeli press, which has accused her of being involved in political appointments, and playing favorites. Earlier this year, the National Labor Court awarded a former handyman and caretaker Menny Naftali more than $43,000 in compensation for years of mistreatment he suffered while working at the Netanyahu’s home in Jerusalem.
Israeli analysts say that if the Attorney General does decide to indict Sara Netanyahu, he may come under pressure to resign. Netanyahu’s predecessor Ehud Olmert, was forced to resign after charges of corruption, and is currently serving a 19-month sentence.
“There have been so many cases of corruption and alleged corruption that the Israeli public has become desensitized,” Guy Ben Porat, a professor of public policy at Ben Gurion University told The Media Line. “If this becomes an indictment, then it’s a whole different ballgame and it takes things into the legal sphere.”