Top police investigators from the anti-corruption unit Lahav 433 interrogated Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the fourth time on March 6. This round of questioning, which lasted almost five hours, focused on Netanyahu's discussions with Yedioth Ahronoth publisher Arnon Mozes and their alleged conspiratorial plotting.

In the middle of the interrogation, one of Netanyahu's top aides entered the room and whispered in the prime minister's ear. “President Donald Trump is on the phone,” the police investigators were informed. “We'll have to take a short break.” The interrogators had no choice. Israeli prime ministers do not have a habit of filtering calls from US presidents. So Netanyahu stepped out for a break, took Trump's call and then returned to his interrogation.

The story leaked to the press soon after, with headlines focusing on Netanyahu's conversation with Trump rather than the interrogation itself. The two men talked about Iran, in the wake of the Islamic Republic's testing of long-range ballistic missiles a day earlier. With that, Netanyahu had managed to turn the criminal investigation into an asset, sending the message to the public that while the police were investigating him over such nonsense as cigars, champagne and idle chatter with publishers, he was dealing with issues critical to Israel's future.

Netanyahu's staff vigorously refuted claims that the call from Trump had been coordinated in advance, claiming that they had been surprised by it. This hardly stands up to the test. Calls between leaders at that level are scheduled well in advance, sometimes days, along with a list of topics for discussion. The New York Times reported that sources in the Trump administration had confirmed that details of the call were planned “well in advance” and that it was mere happenstance that the call came through during Netanyahu's questioning.