Benjamin Netanyahu was just indicted on fraud and bribery charges, becoming the first Israeli prime minister to be indicted in office

Advertisement
Benjamin Netanyahu was just indicted on fraud and bribery charges, becoming the first Israeli prime minister to be indicted in office

Benjamin Netanyahu

Ronen Zvulun/Pool Photo via AP

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem Sunday, Sept. 10, 2017.

Advertisement
  • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday was indicted on bribery, fraud, and breach of trust charges in three corruption cases.
  • Netanyahu is accused of receiving gifts and positive news coverage in exchange for regulatory benefits from the government. He is the first sitting Israeli prime minister ever to be indicted.
  • He has denied all accusations of wrongdoing and argued that he's a victim of a political "witch-hunt" pushed by the left and the media.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday was indicted on bribery, fraud, and breach of trust charges in three corruption cases, Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit announced.

Netanyahu is accused of receiving gifts and positive news coverage in exchange for regulatory benefits from the government. He is the first sitting Israeli prime minister ever to be indicted.

He has denied all accusations of wrongdoing and argued that he's a victim of a political "witch-hunt" pushed by the left and the media.

Here's the details of each charge:

Advertisement

  • "Case 1,000," which concerns allegations that Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, had accepted one million shekels ($276,000) worth of Champagne, cigars, flights, and hotel rooms from an Israeli movie producer and an Australian casino mogul, according to The Times of Israel.
  • "Case 2,000," which regards allegations that Netanyahu tried to broker a deal with Arnon Mozes, the publisher of the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, in which the newspaper covered Netanyahu favorably, and the government would limit its rival's circulation in exchange.
  • "Case 4,000," in which authorities allege that Netanyahu granted regulatory benefits to Bezeq, a telecommunications company, in exchange for positive coverage of Netanyahu by Bezeq's subsidiary news site Walla.

This article will continue to be updated.

{{}}