According to a breaking report on Channel 2, Israel’s Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, after consultation with the State Prosecutor Shai Nitzan at the Ministry of Justice this evening, has reached a decision that there’s no reason to involve the police in investigating the alleged Netanyahu submarine scandal reported by Channel 10. This implication of this statement is that there was no criminal wrong-doing on PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s part.
After the Channel 10 submarine report came out, Netanyahu’s lawyer and the central figure in the alleged submarine scandal, Dovid Shimron, took and passed a polygraph test, indicating he was speaking the truth when he said Netanyahu did not know about anything illegal or unethical.
Shimron was asked four questions: “Did you tell the Prime Minister about any connection between you and German shipyards? Have you talked to the Prime Minister about procuring submarines? Have you talked to the Prime Minister about maintenance of the vessels? And did you tell the Prime Minister you represent Miki Ganor?”.
Shimron responded in the negative to all the questions.
According to the report, the AG will still continue to check into any possibilities of a conflict of interest, presumably on the part of Dovid Shimron, but there’s nothing here that requires a police investigation or criminal probe.
Netanyahu has made it clear that security considerations were his only criteria and concern in the decision to purchase the additional three submarines.
The decision effectively sinks Channel 10’s attack and accusations against Netanyahu.
After Channel 10’s report came out, all of Netanyahu’s political adversaries, Yair Lapid, Ehud Barak, Moshe Yaalon and Yitzchak Herzog, jumped into the tub and joined the cacophony calling for Netanyahu’s investigation.
