Facing corruption allegations, Benjamin Netanyahu interrogated by Israeli police


On Monday night, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was questioned by police for three hours in his Jerusalem residence, on suspicion of corruption in a new criminal investigation.
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit said that an inquiry into Netanyahu was launched in mid-July, and three months later, specific accusations were made against the prime minister that led to evidence last month prompting the criminal investigation. Mandelblit would not say what the investigation is about, other than that Netanyahu is suspected of receiving benefits from businessmen, but he did rule out issues related to Netanyahu receiving money to cover travel expenses and engaging in campaign financing improprieties.
During Netanyahu's first term as prime minister in the late 1990s, he was investigated on allegations of fraud and breach of public trust; while police recommended an indictment, the attorney general's office at the time cited lack of evidence as a reason to not charge him. Ehud Olmert, Israel's prime minister from 2006 to 2009, is serving a 19-month prison sentence for corruption, and one of Netanyahu's political rivals, Knesset member Yair Lapid, said that if "two prime ministers in a row fall for corruption, it will be very difficult to rehabilitate the public's trust in government. At the same time, for the benefit of the state of Israel and the people of Israel, [the investigation] must be fast." Netanyahu denies any wrongdoing.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
A tall ship adventure in the Mediterranean
The Week Recommends Sailing aboard this schooner and exploring Portugal, Spain and Monaco is a 'magical' experience
-
How drone warfare works
The Explainer From Ukraine to Iran, it has become clear that unmanned aircraft are rapidly revolutionising modern warfare
-
The tourist flood in the Mediterranean: can it be stemmed?
Talking Point Finger-pointing at Airbnb or hotel owners obscures the root cause of overtourism in holiday hotspots: unmanageable demand
-
Weinstein convicted of sex crime in retrial
Speed Read The New York jury delivered a mixed and partial verdict at the disgraced Hollywood producer's retrial
-
'King of the Hill' actor shot dead outside home
speed read Jonathan Joss was fatally shot by a neighbor who was 'yelling violent homophobic slurs,' says his husband
-
DOJ, Boulder police outline attacker's confession
speed read Mohamed Sabry Soliman planned the attack for a year and 'wanted them all to die'
-
Assailant burns Jewish pedestrians in Boulder
speed read Eight people from the Jewish group were hospitalized after a man threw Molotov cocktails in a 'targeted act of violence'
-
Driver rams van into crowd at Liverpool FC parade
speed read 27 people were hospitalized following the attack
-
2 Israel Embassy staff shot dead at DC Jewish museum
speed read The suspected gunman chanted 'free, free Palestine'
-
Bombing of fertility clinic blamed on 'antinatalist'
speed read A car bombing injured four people and damaged a fertility clinic and nearby buildings in Palm Springs, California
-
Suspect charged after 11 die in Vancouver car attack
Speed Read Kai-Ji Adam Lo drove an SUV into a crowd at the Lapu Lapu Day festival