Justice minister calls for A-G’s removal over conflict of interest in leak probe

Even some supporters say the attorney general should hand off the case to avoid the appearance of bias.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

Justice Minister Yariv Levin demanded Tuesday that Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara be removed from the case of the illegally leaked Sde Teiman video, due to what he called a clear conflict of interest if she is involved in its investigation.

Writing to the Acting Civil Service Commissioner, Prof. Daniel Hershkowitz, Levin said that he wanted the ombudsman for Complaints Against Judges, retired Justice Asher Kola, to replace the attorney general.

Kola’s appointment, Levin wrote, “will earn broad public trust, which is necessary in the circumstances we find ourselves in.”

Military Attorney General (MAG) Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi has already admitted to sending Israeli media last year a video showing several IDF soldiers severely abusing a Palestinian terrorist in the Sde Teiman detention camp, with the purpose of defending her office’s investigatory reputation.

A former police officer who analyzed the video concluded that it was fabricated. Indeed, the alleged victim was returned to Gaza rather than being kept in Israel to testify.

In addition, several members of her office are suspected of having helped her gather the material for the video, knowing of her actions, and remaining silent about the affair.

Because Baharav-Miara told the Supreme Court when the video surfaced that she would oversee and advise the investigation into the leak—and was in close contact with the military attorney general over the affair—the police could now question her about whether her own office’s investigation was staged, whitewashed or careless, and whether she herself had anything to do with it.

There is also the issue of Baharav-Miara telling the court, on the basis of what the MAG told her, that it was “impossible” to find out who the leaker was – a false statement that Levin also cited as evidence of her conflict of interest in the case.

The ruling coalition’s antagonism toward Baharav-Miara in general, and Levin’s in particular, is well known, as they believe she has pushed her own political agenda in blocking government-proposed initiatives and legislation in the Knesset.

They have even initiated procedures to have her fired, so this effort to push her aside is a cut of the same cloth to such government critics as Democratic Party Chairman Yair Golan, who said that Levin “does not want a legal and genuine investigation, but rather a lynching.”

Opposition leader Yair Lapid also blasted Levin as “doing everything to destroy the system, and we have no confidence in his actions.”

However, even some of Baharav-Miara’s admirers have said that she should hand the case to someone else.

Benny Gantz, head of the opposition’s Blue and White party, wrote on X that since he “trusts” the attorney general and her people and “admires their work to preserve the rule of law,” she should give the case to a lawyer who was not involved in any way in the issue so as not to give Levin and others the opportunity “to use this difficult event to cast contemptuous and political blame on the judicial system and IDF commanders.”

Some members of Baharav-Miara’s office have also said she should remove herself from the case, according to Channel 12’s Amit Segal, who cited them as saying: “Don’t let this thing project on all your struggles with the justice minister. If you give up on this, you’ll be stronger on the other issues.”

The attorney general responded to Levin’s letter by saying he does not have the authority to order the transfer of her powers or prevent her from dealing with the Sde Teiman affair.

“Any attempt to interfere in the investigation proceedings only harms its progress,” she added.