Ex-Attorney General Mandelblit to Testify in Netanyahu Trial

Former Attorney General Dr. Avichai Mandelblit is scheduled to testify on Sunday in the Jerusalem District Court in the trial of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Mandelblit, who decided to indict Netanyahu nearly seven years ago, will appear as a defense witness and is expected to testify for seven days. His testimony is anticipated to focus on a key defense argument: whether police conducted investigative actions against Netanyahu without the Attorney General's approval, as required by law, and if they exceeded granted permissions.

Mandelblit, who made the central decisions in the "Cases of the Thousand" and announced the indictment in November 2019, will also be cross-examined by the prosecution. The defense aims to clarify what Mandelblit approved, his real-time reservations, and the meaning of his instructions to investigators. This is particularly relevant given internal protocols from 2016, which revealed Mandelblit's initial reservations about the direction of the "gifts case" investigation. The defense will likely highlight his statements expressing skepticism about the investigation's focus on minor items like cigars and champagne, contrasting it with the prosecution's claim that he authorized further investigation if grounds were found.

The prosecution, however, presented additional segments of these discussions, arguing that the initial quotes were partial and misleading. They contend Mandelblit did not halt the gifts investigation but clarified that insufficient evidence, like a single cigar box from ten years prior, would not suffice to escalate from a preliminary review to a criminal investigation. The prosecution also pointed to significant developments in October 2016, when witnesses like Hadas Klein and Yonatan Hasson testified about a larger volume of gifts, suggesting Mandelblit's approval for continued investigation.

Mandelblit will be questioned on his knowledge and approvals at each stage, how suspicions evolved with new information, and where he drew the line between an authorized review and a subsequent investigation. The defense also plans to question him about the investigative tactics used against state witness Nir Hefetz. Mandelblit had requested to postpone his testimony until after the elections due to his academic commitments as dean of law at Ono Academic College, but the judges denied this request.