Dim Amor
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara approved this evening a criminal investigation against Minister for Periphery Development Miki Zohar of Likud, on suspicion of involvement in the Histadrut bribery case known as the "Hand Shaking Hand" affair. The approval comes after police approached the Attorney General approximately a year ago with a request to open an investigation against the senior minister in the ruling party.
According to reports, information about Zohar's involvement was received by police incidentally—"by the way", as sources put it—during wiretapping of conversations of another person suspected of involvement in the case. The information obtained led police to approach the Attorney General with the claim that evidence had accumulated of bribery acts in which Minister Zohar is involved.
Baharav-Miara authorized police to proceed with the investigation against Minister Zohar. At this stage, a professional meeting is expected to be held to discuss whether to proceed to an open investigation against him.
Apparently, the "Hand Shaking Hand" affair exposes, allegedly, a complex network of bribery and improper influence at the heart of the Histadrut, at whose center stand senior figures in the public and political sectors.
On the face of it, this is one of the most serious and sensitive chapters in the ramified case, which began to be exposed about a year ago, and joins a long series of investigations that have touched senior officials in recent years.
For Minister Miki Zohar, the investigation is expected to constitute a significant test—personal and public—as it is being conducted while he serves as a minister in an active government, and his senior position in Likud and the Cabinet ensures that developments will be at the center of public and media attention.
Israel's Minister of Culture and Sport, Miki Zohar, stated:
"The media briefings, according to which they are considering summoning Likud ministers for testimony in the Histadrut case, are intended to divert attention from the serious Patzarit incident. This time too—it won't work".
Photo: Attorney General, Ministry of Justice; MK Miki Zohar – from the reporter's website. Use of images is made in accordance with Section 27a of the Copyright Law.
