Nir Hefetz in court: "Netanyahu says everything, including grocery lists"

In the cross-examination of the state witness who served as the former prime minister's communications adviser, he claimed that at one point he was "just" detained, admitted that he "crossed a red line" in disrupting the investigation and told how they closed a future coalition before Netanyahu fired Livni and Lapid ahead of the election. 2015

Yael Friedson

21/12/2021

Tuesday, 21 December 2021, 11:31

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In the Jerusalem District Court, the cross-examination of state witness Nir Hefetz, former communications adviser to former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is accused of bribery, fraud and breach of trust, continues. Hefetz was questioned today by Adv. Jacques Chen, defense attorney for businessman Shaul Alovich, former owner of the Bezeq Group and the Walla!

Website. D. Chen asked Hefetz to delete messages from the phones during the meeting. Hefetz explained that he feared that the messages would reach journalists.

"What I am saying now is not intended to diminish my guilt and responsibility in this matter, why was this panic," Hefetz said.

"Once it's enough that I'm cashed in 433 and I'm photographed at the entrance, I lose all my clients, I'm not allowed to talk to Benjamin Netanyahu, and of course the headlines and hatred. I lived in a world where I have no faith in the investigation and it should never come. "Who did I have to go to except Shaul Alovich? I'm not saying I did not cross a red line, I crossed a red line. Any correspondence that could have been a headline in the media is deleted once a day."

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An object in court, today (Photo: Flash 90, Yonatan Zindel)

Advocate Chen

: "I will show you a correspondence with Yeshua: 'Make a erasure of our correspondence,' and Yeshua replies to you: 'Probably erases every day.' COUNSEL told in an interview with the witness you asked Jesus to delete public speaking. "

" This routine of my work, as Jesus received the message - a lot of people have received such a message, because I am a spokesman for the prime minister and every word can grab headlines, we are under a magnifying glass. "

: "Beyond the public interest, there are embarrassing things of the people you advise, there are embarrassing things you do not want to have on the phone."

: "True"

At this point, Adv. Chen and Hefetz discussed the question of who initiated the disruption, he or Elowitz. A state witness. "I thought, how can I be here in detention, loyal to the line I believe in and do not provide a version, and he sells me.

I'm not saying he sold me, but that's how I thought. "He stressed that" I was really worried about this video, since I did not think I was helping to mediate in bribery, it (disrupting the investigation, YF) worried me. "

Shaul and Iris Elowitz in court, today (Photo: Flash 90, Yonatan Zindel)

Adv. Chen wanted to find out with Hefetz the circumstances of Hefetz's signing of a state witness agreement, and went over the chain of events during Hefetz's long detention, which lasted 15 days. Thus, on Thursday, February 23, Hefetz first met with Adv. Eli Zohar, After his detention, he was represented by attorney Yaron Kostelitz, who does not represent state witnesses.

"It was a shock, a tremendous blow," Hefetz said. There was a stage where I, among myself, wanted to examine the option of being a state witness. " He explained that "in deciding to be a state witness you have to put at stake utilitarian considerations: family, economic situation.It is not out of a beating for sin, not at all. "

Chen claimed that Hefetz was detained for negotiation purposes, and not for interrogation.

"The whole interrogation in the days before that was sparse if at all, and in the last few days I have hardly been interrogated, they despaired of me and just kept me in custody," Hefetz agreed.

"There is an alternative to house arrest, restrictive conditions and also the fear of disruption - there are alternatives. They held me to keep pressing. When the head of the investigation team went skiing in Switzerland, the man who had been preparing for this investigation for months. Is that how they conduct an investigation?

More on Walla!

The loyal Netanyahu fighters, the story of the "mental abuse" of the object went out of all proportion

To the full article

Hefetz expanded on the continuation of the chain of events.

Advocate Sofer said there was momentum now, that he now had to hit the iron while it was hot, but I had the freedom to blow up the negotiations and go home.

I asked my wife what she thought, what the children's positions were, not through lawyers.

She told me what each child's position was. "

Adv

.

Chen:" Then you return to the unit, and the agreement was signed on the night between Sunday and Monday. "

: "After my master ended the conversation with his wife, I was free to change your mind, right?"

Hefetz: "True, there were several times I told Ilan Sofer how many times we would blow it up and go. It was nerve-wracking, every time."

"Sometimes the political and the media mix"

The investigation moved to the election period of 2015. Adv. Chen presented a correspondence between the CEO of the Walla! Former Ilan Yeshua for the Zionist camp's candidate in the elections and now President Yitzhak Herzog. Herzog wrote to Salvation: "Ilan, your reviewer is doing me a crazy attack, please talk to me", and in another message "Channel 2 gave me two days ago 15, this dubious reviewer Degani suddenly gives 10 ?! It does not appear in any poll". To this salvation replied: "I called them and talked to them for a few more minutes," and later wrote "Treated." Herzog replied, "You are huge." Herzog later updated Yeshua that the survey appears in the article "Maybe in a few lines but quite buried and maybe not at all".

"Is this appeal normal, acceptable, unusual?" Asked

The object, which confirmed that Salvation's response to the request is exceptional. "He wants to shelve or conceal a survey," Hefetz explained. "A poll is something that every media outlet puts in its headline, and is also in fact a coordinator with Mr. Yeshua who will have another poll at a time that suits him, and the events affect the poll.

Chen presented another correspondence between Herzog and Yeshua, in which Herzog commented on Yeshua on a headline on the website. "They certainly responded to my request, thinking it should not be pressed any more so that no antigonism would be created," Salvation wrote to Herzog.

Adv. Chen: "This is another example of Herzog's importance of gaining expression on the Walla! Website, on the eve of the election"

: "True, they actually agree that they will not press Walla! That they put in his message page. "

"Your reviewer is making a crazy attack on me."

Herzog (Photo: Flash 90, Jonathan Zindel)

Adv. Chen went on to discuss the period before the announcement of the election.

It seems to me that this escalation talked about, "he said.

:" Yes, sometimes political and media mix. "

:" these consultations talking about how to brief and prepare the hearts for this move. "

" before the dismissals of members and Torch, the days of before there Dilemma whether to do [it] - and if so how and when, but each minister closes a different party.

Benjamin Netanyahu did not fire them before he had a closed coalition.

Since the ultra-Orthodox sat in the opposition and were angry with Netanyahu, they had to be shut down.

"Israel Katz and Ze'ev Elkin divided among themselves the decree of the future partnership, and Bennett also had to be closed down."

"He says everything." Netanyahu (Photo: Flash 90, Yonatan Zindel)

At one point, Adv. Chen asked Hefetz about Netanyahu's shredding habits. We will only make it clear that the shredder is permanently in Netanyahu's office, "said Adv. Chen.

Hefetz confirmed this. "The shredder is permanent. He grinds everything. Everything. Benjamin Netanyahu grinds everything. Even if there was a grocery list, he would grind that too."

: "In all your interrogations and in all 3,000 pages of your interrogation, you did not say about the document version. We heard about it for the first time here. You are asked again and again, you are asked concrete questions, about each and every meeting. "There is no mention of the event of removing the pin and grinding."

: "I did not attach significance to it because from Netanyahu's point of view it was clear that he would shred it. There are things that are in his handwriting that could have value.Even if this is the most esoteric speech. "

: "Are you saying this now from memory?

:" This time from memory. "

:" So why did you not fit in describing that he grinned? ".

:" We know what the term grinding means.

Why did you not say that in the main interrogation? "

:" I did not attach any meaning to it.

It should have been said even then. "

What is Netanyahu accused of?

In the 1000 case (the benefit benefits case),

Netanyahu is accused of receiving benefits worth about NIS 700,000 from businessmen Arnon Milchen and James Packer, while he served as prime minister. The main gifts were cigars, champagne packages and jewelry.

In addition, it was alleged that Netanyahu acted in Milchen's favor in three matters, in which the businessman sought his intervention: he approached US Secretary of State John Kerry to extend the businessman's visa, he approached Finance Minister Yair Lapid to extend the exemption. A tax for returning residents, and he worked to promote a merger of "Keshet" and "Reshet" - ostensibly at Milchen's request. According to the lawsuit, these acts damaged the image of the public service and the public's trust in it. In this case, Netanyahu is accused of

.

Deals with talks between Netanyahu and Yedioth Ahronoth publisher Noni Mozes. He was accused of bribery. On the other hand, the ombudsman was also convinced that Netanyahu did not intend to complete the bribery deal, but continued the talks with Mozes to improve his coverage in the Yedioth group, and there are even certain actions for this purpose.

In this case, Netanyahu is accused

.

is the most serious case for the prime minister, dealing with regulatory benefits worth hundreds of millions of shekels, which Netanyahu allegedly granted to Elowitz.

In return, according to the indictment, Elovich acted to skew the coverage on the Walla! Website, which was under his control.

In this case, Netanyahu is accused

.

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