Likud ups attacks on legal establishment ahead of trial

Anti-Netanyahu groups plan “guerrilla activities” near court

By GIL HOFFMAN
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he speaks to supporters following the announcement of exit polls in Israel's election at his Likud party headquarters in Tel Aviv, Israel March 3, 2020 (photo credit: REUTERS/AMMAR AWAD)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he speaks to supporters following the announcement of exit polls in Israel's election at his Likud party headquarters in Tel Aviv, Israel March 3, 2020
(photo credit: REUTERS/AMMAR AWAD)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s closest allies in Likud and his family escalated their criticism of the legal establishment on Thursday, ahead of the opening of Netanyahu’s trial on Sunday.
Netanyahu shared an article on his Facebook page with the headline “Netanyahu has no chance of receiving a fair trial.”
His son Yair Netanyahu referred to his father’s legal proceedings as a “show trial” in which the judges have already determined the defendant’s guilt, and compared the prime minister to wrongly convicted French-Jewish officer Alfred Dreyfus. Yair called Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit, who indicted his father “a criminal!!!!”
Likud Cyber Minister David Amsalem also referred to Mandelblit as a criminal in an Army Radio interview and said a previous attorney-general had seen Mandelblit as “immoral and abnormal.”
New Justice Minister Avi Nissenkorn responded to the continuous attacks on Mandelblit by reiterating that he has full faith in the attorney-general and saying “ministers in the government are permitted to express substantive criticism, but unrestrained attacks cross a redline.”
Transportation Minister Miri Regev announced she would come to the court on Sunday to “show support for Netanyahu and his wife.” Her associates said she “was not coming to protest,” that she would respect the court and that she was sure the judges would find Netanyahu innocent.
Likud faction chairman Miki Zohar said attacking the legal establishment would not be his party’s strategy.
“We trust and hope that with God’s help, justice will come to light,” he said.
A coalition of groups led by the Movement for Quality Government are planning protests and what one source called “guerrilla activities” near the Jerusalem District Court under the banner “Israel is ashamed.” The Black Flag group will protest near the prime minister’s official residence.
Presumptive opposition leader Yair Lapid told the Associated Press on Thursday that Netanyahu was “embarrassing Israel.” He said he felt bad the trial would end up attracting worldwide attention.
“It’s almost like I’m saying I wish they would never notice,” Lapid said. “This shouldn’t happen. This is horrible for the spirit of the nation.”
Ahead of the trial, Netanyahu and Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz met on Thursday to resolve disputes between them that have come up since the formation of their government on Sunday.
In a joint statement released after the meeting, both men said the meeting went well and dealt with a variety of issues on the national agenda to help citizens.
Their relationship hit a snag in their first week working together due to behavior by Gantz that Netanyahu saw as “a finger in the eye.”
Likud sources said Netanyahu was upset with statements Gantz made in an interview with Channel 12 in which he blamed Netanyahu for a clause in the coalition agreement guaranteeing a residence for both of them funded by the state during the entire term.
Netanyahu also did not like a statement Gantz made in the interview ruling out bypassing the Supreme Court if it does not let Netanyahu serve as alternate prime minister under Gantz in a year and a half, and Gantz adviser Ronen Tzur saying he expected Gantz to become prime minister sooner than November 2021, because of Netanyahu’s criminal cases.
Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this report.