Israeli police said Wednesday that the Lahav 433 fraud investigations unit has finished its probe into former foreign minister Eli Cohen over the “diplomatic passports” affair. The case centers on suspicions that diplomatic passports were issued to people who did not meet the requirements, including Yair Netanyahu, the prime minister’s son. According to people involved in the investigation, the file now contains evidentiary grounds for a breach of trust offense, and the decision on whether to file indictments now rests with the State Attorney’s Office.
Besides Cohen, who is now energy minister, the suspects also include former Foreign Ministry director general Ronen Levy and former ministerial aide Tali Albaz. The probe also examined whether passports were issued with the approval of the director general to Yair Netanyahu, Dimona Mayor Benny Biton, Benjamin Regional Council head Israel Gantz, Merhavim Regional Council head Shay Hajaj, and Shadot Negev Regional Council head Tamir Idan. Police stressed that the recipients of the passports are not suspects in the case.
Police said the investigation opened in January 2024 with the attorney general’s approval, on suspicion that Cohen and other senior Foreign Ministry officials committed breach of trust by issuing diplomatic passports to various figures for non-professional reasons. Dozens of people were questioned, many documents were seized, and the case was handled with the help of the Tax and Economic Prosecution. After the inquiry was completed, Lahav 433 commander Maj. Gen. Meni Binyamin approved the summary, which was then endorsed by Maj. Gen. Boaz Balt and sent to prosecutors.
Cohen’s associates said he welcomed the end of the investigation and was confident that justice would prevail. They said everything was done according to procedure, that Yair Netanyahu’s passport had been renewed for security reasons several times before by different director generals since 2009, and that the local authority leaders had also received passports in line with ministry rules because of their international activity in office. They said Cohen expects prosecutors to conclude that there is no basis for an indictment. The article also noted that diplomatic passports are highly sought after as a status symbol, even though they offer only limited privileges, such as faster border processing, some security screening exemptions, VIP airport treatment in some countries, shopping discounts in some places, and in some cases the ability to carry diplomatic mail under special conditions.
