Likud minister Regev
Photo: Knesset Channel
Minister Regev belittles investigations against PM
Despite recent torrent of corruption affairs in which Netanyahu finds himself embroiled, Minister Regev stand by the premier, accusing the opposition, police and media of distorting details to bring him down at the public’s expense.
Culture and Sports Minister Miri Regev (Likud) disparaged Wednesday at the Knesset plenum the investigations against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while simultaneously slamming the leaks emanating from the police and the media's coverage of them.
Regev sarcastically announced that "Case 7000 was just opened. There are serious suspicions against Shoshana. A kindergarten teacher who apparently gave Netanyahu an additional cookie at the kindergarten's graduation celebration. Tomorrow, a photograph of Netanyahu will be published with the cookie in all the newspapers."
Culture and Sports Minister Regev (Photo: Knesset Channel)
Regev then attacked the police and the media directly, claiming their actions point to an obvious intent to topple Netanyahu.
"This is your method—every half-leak immediately becomes a headline and a public indictment," she scorned, claiming that "even you know that Netanyahu is not involved in the Bezeq affair (commonly known as Case 4000—ed) and in Judge Gerstel's case (commonly known as Case 1270) and yet you publish a large picture of him (in every article about the subject) and manipulate the public."
Certain that their efforts will ultimately come to nothing, Regev asserted the media "has one problem—the public isn't buying it," citing a recent poll that showed the Likud is likely to receive 34 mandates in the coming elections, and so likely to win them by a large majority.
"This should teach you that the public is not stupid," she said. "The public understands that this is a witch hunt. The public knows that you have been doing this for the past 22 years. Thousands of headlines, and not a single indictment (against Netanyahu—ed)."
The minister then reiterated the words of her fellow party members, saying that while Israel is a democracy where everyone has a basic right to due process, some in the opposition and in the media "do not recognize this right," and, blinded by their hatred of Netanyahu, have only the goal of toppling him in mind.
PM Netanyahu (R) next to his former media adviser Hefetz (Photo: Amit Shabi)
Aside from having the police recommend the attorney general to indict him for bribery, fraud and breach of trust in two separate cases, Netanyahu found himself in recent days embroiled in two more major police investigations, Cases 4000 and 1270.
Suspects in Case 4000, which include Bezeq majority owner Shaul Elovitch, former media adviser to Netanyahu Nir Hefetz and former Communications Ministry director-general Shlomo Filber, are alleged to have either given or received bribes, in a quid pro quo relationship involving actions that benefited Bezeq and Walla! News—a news site owned by the telecommunications giant—in return for favorable coverage of Netanyahu and his family.
Hefetz is also a suspect in Case 1270—offering former District Court president Hila Gerstel a promotion to attorney general in exchange for closing the case against the prime minister's wife, Sara, for alleged forgery of receipts and misuse of public funds, also referred to as the Prime Minister's residences affair.
Eli Kamir, former Bezeq strategic advisor and another suspect in the affair, turned state's witness Wednesday.
