Israeli government tries to fire head of Netanyahu corruption probe
Netanyahu and his supporters have accused Baharav-Miara of exceeding her powers by blocking decisions by the elected government, including a move to dismiss the head of Israel's domestic security agency.
In a statement after the vote, Baharav-Miara called her dismissal 'unlawful' and vowed that she and her office would remain faithful to the law and continue to act professionally and honestly.
'This is a fateful blow to the rule of law, equality before the law, human rights, and the ability of the law enforcement system to deal with government corruption,' she added.
The attempt to fire the attorney general for the first time in the country's 78-year history was immediately frozen by the High Court until justices can rule on its legality. The government is barred from appointing a new attorney general and influencing Baharav-Miara's operations before further instructions are issued.
Netanyahu did not take part in the hearing or vote on Baharav-Miara's dismissal due to a conflict of interest over his ongoing criminal trial and the attorney general's role as head of the prosecution.
Three criminal cases have been opened against Netanyahu, who has been charged with bribery, fraud, and breach of trust. He could face up to ten years in prison over the bribery allegations, while the fraud and breach of trust charges each carry up to three years.
Several hearings in Netanyahu's long-running corruption trial have been canceled after a court accepted requests by the prime minister on classified diplomatic, security, and health grounds.
Opposition politicians have criticized the attorney general's dismissal, calling it part of Netanyahu's controversial judicial reform plan which sparked one of the largest protests in Israel's history. Opponents claim that the reform would violate democratic principles as the ruling coalition would concentrate more power in its hands and Netanyahu would attempt to avoid criminal liability.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Russia Today
3 hours ago
- Russia Today
Exiled Moldovan opposition head decries police crackdown
Moldova's police action targeting alleged electoral corruption amounts to political persecution of the opponents of the government, according to exiled opposition politician Ilan Shor. The authorities in Moldova said on Thursday they are conducting 78 search warrants across the country targeting individuals described as 'members and sympathizers of a criminal organization.' Ilan Shor, who leads the opposition Victory political bloc from abroad, claimed that the actions are directed at silencing his movement. The bloc is trying to overturn its ban from taking part in the upcoming parliamentary election against the ruling Party of Action and Solidarity. 'Law enforcement is turning offices and homes upside down solely under this demented suspicion of interference in the 2025 election, which hasn't even taken place,' Shor said. 'These searches are just more political repression and intimidation of anyone who refuses to support those scoundrels.' Last week, President Maia Sandu, who Shor branded a 'microdictator,' accused the Russian government of planning to covertly funnel more than €100 million ($115 million) to her political opponents ahead of Moldova's parliamentary vote scheduled for September. The Kremlin rejected the claim, calling it another attempt by Chisinau to deflect attention from what it described as the government's erosion of democratic norms. Sandu has defended her administration's crackdown on what she claims are pro-Russian criminal networks, saying these actions are critical to keeping Moldova on the path to EU membership. Shor, who now resides in Russia, is the founder of the SOR party, which was outlawed by the Moldovan authorities in 2023 after its candidate, Evgenia Gutsul, won a regional election in the autonomous Gagauzia region. Gutsul, now a leading figure in the Victory bloc, which was formed in 2024 by Euroskeptic politicians, including former SOR members, was sentenced this week to seven years in prison over alleged financial crimes. She denied any wrongdoing and called the verdict an attempt at political assassination.
Russia Today
a day ago
- Russia Today
Ukrainian officials busted in ‘large-scale' military bribery scheme
Several senior Ukrainian officials have been detained on suspicion of receiving up to 30% in kickbacks from military contracts, anti-corruption agencies have announced. The arrests came just days after Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky was forced to abandon his attempts to restrict the independence of the anti-graft agencies. In a statement on Saturday, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) said they had uncovered a 'large-scale' corruption scheme involving contracts for the purchase of drones and electronic warfare systems for the Ukrainian army. Ukrainian media has identified three of the four suspects – Aleksey Kuznetsov, an MP with Zelensky's Servant of the People party, former Lugansk Governor Sergey Gayday, and Rubezhansky district head Andrey Yurchenko. Between 2024 and 2025, the group allegedly created a scheme to steal budget funds allocated by local governments for defense needs. One part of the scheme involved awarding a contract for electronic warfare systems at an intentionally inflated price, with the group receiving illegal benefits worth 30% of the contract amount. A separate contract for FPV drones, worth around $240,000, was allegedly overpriced by around $80,000, with the company's officials later handing over kickbacks to members of the group, the investigators said. The same day, Zelensky stated that he had met with the heads of NABU and SAPO to discuss the scandal, calling it 'absolutely immoral' and thanked the agencies for their good work. Two weeks earlier Zelensky had attempted to bring both bodies under government control only for street protests to force him to sign off on their independence last week.
Russia Today
a day ago
- Russia Today
Zelensky rating slumps
Public trust in Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has dropped by 7% in about a month, according to a nationwide poll released on Wednesday. The apparent slump in popularity came after his controversial botched crackdown on the country's key anti-corruption agencies. The survey by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), conducted from July 23 to August 4, suggests that trust in Zelensky stands at 58%, down from 65% in June. The poll says 35% of Ukrainians now say they do not trust Zelensky – an increase from 30% in early June. The drop in support was especially steep among respondents under 30, where trust fell by 15% – from 74% at the start of summer to 59% by early August, according to the poll. The KIIS partially attributed the decline to Zelensky's attempt to strip the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) of independence, citing Russian influence. Critics of the move accused Zelensky of having authoritarian tendencies, sparking protests at home and discontent in the West, given that many supporters of Kiev have for years demanded that it intensify the fight against corruption. Following the backlash, Zelensky was forced to roll back the reforms. KIIS stressed that although the controversy undoubtedly damaged Zelensky's image, other factors are at play. Of those who distrust him, only 6% cited the controversy as the reason, compared to 21% who pointed to overall corruption and 20% who say Zelensky is an inefficient leader during a time of conflict. The KIIS poll was based on phone interviews with 1,022 respondents across Ukraine. Last month, Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) stated that US and UK officials had secretly met with their key Ukrainian counterparts to discuss ousting Zelensky and replacing him with former military chief Valery Zaluzhny. According to the SVR, the recent NABU and SAPO controversy was in large part engineered by Zelensky's own officials to provide justification for the Western partners to seek his removal.
