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Indicted for bribery, Netanyahu ramps up his victimization campaign

The decision by Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit to indict Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on charges of receiving bribes, fraud and breach of trust could be one too many even for the comeback master.

Supporters of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu protest outside his residence following Israel's Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit's indictment ruling in Jerusalem November 21, 2019. The placards in Hebrew read, "Strong in security Strong in Economy ". REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RC2UFD9194FK
Supporters of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu protest outside his residence following Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit's indictment ruling in Jerusalem, Nov. 21, 2019. — REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

The decision to indict Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was made “with a heavy heart but also with a whole heart,’’ Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit said Nov. 21 in informing Israelis that he has decided to charge Netanyahu with bribery, fraud and breach of trust.

Mandelblit knows his boss inside out. He was a confidant of the prime minister and a member of his intimate circle, serving for four years as Cabinet secretary. "Prime Minister Netanyahu is a privileged man. I have been privileged to work beside him and to see his many talents and abilities as prime minister … (but) law enforcement is not a choice. … It's not a matter of right or left, it's not a matter of politics," Mandelblit said. The attorney general emphasized that it was a difficult day for the Israeli public and for himself personally as he dropped the bombshell, which threatens now to sow unprecedented chaos throughout Israeli society.

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