Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will not have to recuse himself because of his trial, Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit said Thursday at a legal conference.
"As I made it clear to the Supreme Court in the position I submitted, it is possible for a prime minister standing trial on criminal charges to continue serving if conflicts of interest are strictly regulated, preventing any possibility that he might use his authority to influence his personal or legal matters," Mendelblit said.
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Mendelblit said that if possible conflicts of interest were handled in a way that would ensure "complete separation" between "Mr. Netanyahu's serving as prime minister and the authorities granted to him by that role and his personal handling of the ongoing legal process involving him. These things have been clearly stated in a ruling by Chief Justice [Esther Hayut]."
Mendelblit went on to criticize attacks against State Attorney Liat Ben Ari.
"I reject the despicable attempts to threaten or harm the good name of those who are handling the indictment submitted. A reality in which the son of a senior prosecutor is exposed to threats because she is the prosecutor responsible for a [certain] legal proceeding is unacceptable," he said.
"We will not allow things like this. If anyone thinks that the work of this or any other prosecutor will be affected by these personal attacks, I would like to inform them that they are mistaken."
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