Justice Minister Amir Ohana lashed out Oct. 29 at the law enforcement system over the investigation into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, claiming there was a “prosecutor’s office within the state prosecutor’s office” designed to destroy the careers of certain politicians.

Ohana, who is serving in the transition government, showed no restraint whatsoever in his words. And yet, while he crossed every imaginable red line, it was hardly unexpected. It was obvious that at some stage or other, he would have to repay Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for appointing Ohana to that lofty position (as minister in a transition government, Ohana can do little to nothing). Since Ohana has had very few opportunities to help Netanyahu until now, all that he could do was make a public appearance in order to brand the state prosecutor’s actions as illegitimate.

If Ohana had been someone with serious tenure in public service, and if he had established himself as someone for whom the cause of justice overrides all political considerations, the justice minister could have contributed more to the intense effort underway to ruin the reputation of law enforcement in Israel. Instead, Ohana was simply pathetic. It was so obvious that he wanted to return a favor to Netanyahu. After all, his appointment came as a surprise even to him (and only after others rejected the offer). He did not believe that he was a rising star in the party, or that, as a relatively obscure Likud backbencher in the Knesset, he would be promoted to such a high position. The effort by the provisional minister to say there is an unidentified, “internal voice” within the state prosecutor’s office who is conspiring with the media to overthrow the country's leader — likening the process to extortion — was lightweight. One can hardly take seriously such grave claims coming from a junior politician.

In fact, it is hard to imagine that anyone believed his accusations against the most senior staff of the Justice Ministry or thought that there was cause to investigate. Ohana didn’t even suggest any practical measures, apart from the idea that the attorneys be subjected to a polygraph test, or that they hand their cellphones over so that they can be checked, as if they were real suspects. From Ohana’s point of view, all he had to do was appear, like no minister before him had done, to offer his critique of the justice system. By doing so, he fulfilled his obligation of coming out against the system that dared to suspect Netanyahu in the first place.