Likud’s legal adviser quits as internal fraud probe and election planning intensify

Likud’s legal adviser, attorney Avi Halevi, announced on Thursday that he is leaving the post immediately, in a letter sent to Prime Minister and party chairman Benjamin Netanyahu. The resignation comes only days before the Likud convention, which is expected to meet next week to discuss a series of organizational and constitutional changes.

The timing is especially sensitive for Likud because the party is still dealing with a months-long fraud scandal. The affair involved allegations of forged documents, signatures and payments intended to advance internal moves within Likud institutions. It prompted internal reviews, sharp clashes among party figures and criticism of how party procedures were being handled.

Halevi will be replaced by attorney Ilan Bombach, who on Thursday represented the government at the High Court hearing over the appointment of the state comptroller. In that case, the judges issued an interim order and suggested that the Knesset hold a repeat vote.

The resignation also comes as Netanyahu weighs changes to Likud’s election mechanism ahead of the next national vote. Among the main options under consideration are canceling primaries and creating an advisory committee to determine the list, abolishing the regional slots reserved for representatives from 10 districts and holding one nationwide primary with 10 reserved spots, or holding a nationwide primary up to place 40, reserving 10 seats, and pushing the district slots farther down the slate. Netanyahu has been meeting with local council heads, ministers, MKs and party activists as he reviews the proposals. Likud also routinely changes its selection system before each election, sometimes with minor adjustments and sometimes with major ones, as Netanyahu seeks to preserve the party’s core strength while adding new faces from outside the primaries.