JERUSALEM — The attorney general of Israel has mandated that police initiate an inquiry into the wife of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, suspecting her involvement in harassment directed toward political adversaries and a witness related to the corruption trial involving the Prime Minister.
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara announced the decision late Thursday, indicating that the investigation would center on the revelations from a recent exposé by the “Uvda” investigative program regarding Sara Netanyahu.
The program has revealed a substantial collection of WhatsApp communications in which Mrs. Netanyahu allegedly directs a former aide to orchestrate protests against political rivals and intimidate Hadas Klein, a pivotal witness in the ongoing trial.
Although the announcement did not explicitly mention Mrs. Netanyahu’s name, the Justice Ministry opted not to provide additional commentary.
Earlier in the day, Benjamin Netanyahu defended his wife by highlighting her charitable contributions and denouncing the “Uvda” report as falsehoods.
“My opponents on the left and in the media have targeted my wife again. They continuously launch unjustified attacks against Sara,” he stated. The Prime Minister criticized the program as “false propaganda, despicable propaganda that resurrects lies from obscurity.”
This latest controversy adds to the series of legal challenges facing the Netanyahu family, particularly emphasizing the Prime Minister’s ongoing corruption trial. The couple has consistently faced a tumultuous relationship with the media in Israel.
Netanyahu is facing charges of fraud, breach of trust, and bribery in several cases that allege he traded favors with influential media executives and affluent acquaintances. He consistently refutes the allegations and proclaims himself to be a target of a “witch hunt” perpetrated by overzealous prosecutors, police, and media entities.
The investigated correspondence between Sara Netanyahu and Hanni Bleiweiss, a former aide to the Prime Minister who passed away last year due to cancer, reveals that Sara Netanyahu supposedly incited Bleiweiss to urge police to take aggressive action against anti-government demonstrators, as well as to mobilize protests against critics of her husband. Additionally, she allegedly instructed Bleiweiss to rally activists from Netanyahu’s Likud party to launch attacks against Klein.
Hadas Klein, who works for billionaire Hollywood producer Arnon Milchan, has testified concerning her involvement in delivering significant quantities of champagne, cigars, and gifts to Netanyahu on behalf of her employer.
The report also highlighted that Bleiweiss was told to set up demonstrations outside the homes of key figures in the corruption case, including lead prosecutor Liat Ben-Ari, and prior Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, who had issued the charges. The messaging included directives for protests and social media campaigns aimed at discrediting political adversaries.
Bleiweiss, a longtime aide to Netanyahu, reportedly faced mistreatment from Sara Netanyahu during her illness, which led her to divulge the messages to a reporter just before her death.
Previously, Sara Netanyahu has faced allegations of abusive conduct toward her domestic staff and extravagant spending of public funds, contributing to her reputation as disconnected from the realities faced by ordinary Israelis. In 2019, she received a fine for the misuse of state funds.
In response to the recent developments, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who supervises the police and has called for the dismissal of Attorney General Baharav-Miara due to a series of grievances, asserted that this new revelation further warranted her removal from office.
“Someone who engages in political persecution of government ministers and their families should not remain the attorney general,” he declared.
Justice Minister Yariv Levin, another supporter of Netanyahu and critic of Baharav-Miara, accused her of paying undue attention to “television gossip.”
“Selective law enforcement is a crime!” he added in a statement.
