The Israeli cabinet unanimously approved on Monday Gali Baharav-Miara as Israel's new attorney general.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram

This is the first time a woman is confirmed for this position in Israel. 

Miara, 63, lives in Givatayim and is married to Tzion, who is a former senior security official. She is a mother of three. She served in the Israel Defense Forces Intelligence Directorate's main signal intelligence unit, 8200, and was a senior officer at the directorate's Production and Analysis Division. She went to law school at Tel Aviv University, where she also completed a master's degree in law.

Before joining private practice she worked for three decades at the State Attorney's Office, and reached the position of Tel Aviv district attorney.

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett hailed Baharav-Miara as a professional choice and for becoming the first woman to reach that position. "We need a good, strong and serious system that citizens trust. On top of that, the attorney general's most basic role is to help the government implement its policies in accordance with the law." 

Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!

The post Gali Baharav-Miara named Israel's first female AG appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

The Justice Ministry has previously said the hearing would take place by July 10, but Mendelblit's office said on Wednesday that the much-anticipated hearing would at the beginning of October. Netanyahu's lawyers had reportedly asked for at least a year.

Several months ago Mendelblit released a report laying out the charges against Netanyahu in three corruption cases, saying he would make a final decision on an indictment after Netanyahu appeared for a hearing.

The charges include allegations that he accepted gifts from billionaire friends and promoted beneficial regulations for a telecom magnate in exchange for positive coverage on a news site.

The recently reelected Netanyahu has denied any wrongdoing and has called the charges the product of a media-orchestrated witch hunt to depose him.

The criminal investigations facing Netanyahu, known as Case ‎‎1,000, Case 2,000 and Case 4,000, have clouded his premiership and were a central issue during the recent election.

Case 1,000 centers on expensive gifts Netanyahu and his wife, ‎Sara, allegedly received from Hollywood producer ‎Arnon Milchan and Australian tycoon James Packer.

Case 2,000 focuses on an alleged deal between Netanyahu and Yedioth Ahronoth publisher Arnon Mozes in which Yedioth would soften its aggressive ‎anti-Netanyahu tone in return for the prime ‎minister acting to curtail Yedioth rival Israel ‎Hayom's activities to benefit ‎Yedioth financially.‎

Case 4,000 revolves around allegations of a deal in which Shaul ‎Elovitch, the controlling shareholder of Israeli telecom corporation Bezeq, ensured positive coverage for Netanyahu in the Bezeq-owned Walla news website in exchange for the prime minister ‎promoting government regulations worth hundreds of ‎millions of dollars to the company.‎

The post Netanyahu's pre-indictment hearing moved to October appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.