A team of investigators from the Lahav 433 Anti-Corruption Unit appeared at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence in Jerusalem Jan 2. They carried several thick dossiers in their hands. The team was led by unit head Koresh Barnur. They entered the state residence and didn’t exit it until a little more than three hours later, marking the official beginning of an investigation into Netanyahu, under caution, for allegations involving breaching his duty of trust as a public servant.

Over the past 20 years, all of Israel’s prime ministers have undergone criminal investigations of one kind or another, and Netanyahu was the first, during his first term in office, 1996-99, on a series of issues, including accepting gifts and attempting to charge the state treasury for personal expenditures. Next in line were Ehud Barak (for the “fictitious straw companies” affair) and Ariel Sharon (for the Greek Island affair and funds involving the businessman Cyril Kern, among other issues). Then came Ehud Olmert, the first to be indicted and who was ultimately convicted and is now doing time in prison.

Netanyahu, even before the investigation against him began, adopted tactics to make it clear that he has no intention of caving. To the contrary, in fact, Netanyahu intends to leverage his popularity and recruit his supporters, mainly the growing right-wing Israeli public, to constantly repeat one message: that he is being subjected to a political investigation and political persecution. In a meeting of the Likud faction hours before the investigators arrived at his residence, Netanyahu claimed that he would not have come under investigation if he had had different policies. Instead, he said, he was being obsessively persecuted by the media. Many of his Likud supporters agree with his assertion.

Meanwhile, Knesset member David Amsalem of Likud is trying to revive an old bill that would give all sitting prime ministers immunity from investigation while in office. The bill's future is unclear, as is Netanyahu’s. If the investigation leads to an indictment being filed against Netanyahu, he will be forced to resign. If the case is closed, as in the past, he will emerge victorious and stronger than ever.