“Once an indictment is filed, it will be improper and inappropriate for the president to continue in his post," Mazuz said. “The president should consider taking the step of declaring temporary incapacitation until a final decision is made on the indictment in the cases being examined."
Mazuz issued his statement in response to a directive to state his opinion by Supreme Court Justice Mishael Heshin. Heshin is hearing a petition by attorney Yossi Fuchs seeking Katzav’s immediate resignation.
Police investigators have recommended that Katzav be indicted and the evidence against him has now been transferred to the State Prosecutor's Office. Katzav is accused of committing various sex offenses, including rape, harassing a witness and obstruction of justice, though the investigations on some of the charges are ongoing.
Mazuz specified that in such a case where “serious criminal violations" are being looked into, “it would be appropriate for the president to consider removing himself temporarily from office by petitioning the Knesset to determine that he is temporarily incapacitated."
At issue is the ability of Israel’s Supreme Court to order Katzav’s resignation altogether, since according to Israel’s Basic Law on the matter, an acting president is immune from prosecution.
Mazuz ruled that the court indeed does not have the ability to remove Katzav. "The High Court of Justice does not appear to have the authority to rule on the petition," Mazuz wrote. The Knesset, Mazuz ruled, is the only governmental body capable of removing Katzav from office.
The Attorney General added that should the president resign due to “temporary incapacitation,” it would not harm his presumed innocence. "The purpose of determining incapacitation is… designed to maintain the public's faith in the presidency and allowing the investigation to be carried out without hindrance," Mazuz wrote.
Mazuz’s breaking of his silence on the case has brought a barrage of calls from the Knesset for Katzav’s immediate resignation.
MK Zahava Gal'on (Meretz), assuming that Katzav will refuse to step down, is already calling upon Knesset Members to act to bring about his removal. "Because the president has already made it perfectly clear that he has no intention of adhering to the proper norms outlined by the attorney general, the Knesset has the moral obligation to impeach him," she said Sunday.
MK Yoram Marciano (Labor) said that Katzav, for his own good and to prove his innocence, must step down. "In the wake of the attorney general's decision, the president has no other choice but to suspend himself immediately and clear his name from his home in Kiryat Malachi – not from the president’s residence.”
MK Ruhama Avraham (Kadima), who has been calling for Katzav to step down for months, repeated her position, saying all the bureaucratic aspects of the move are already in place. "The president must inform the House Committee that he is seeking temporary incapacitation until the legal proceedings in his matter conclude,” she said. "By doing so, the president will prevent a humiliating impeachment by the Knesset."
Deputy Prime Minister Eli Yishai (Shas), whose party played a leading role in Katzav’s victory over Shimon Peres in elections for president six years ago, said he expects Katzav to do the right thing in the coming days. “One who does not care to protect the dignity of the presidency should at least be concerned with our dignity,” Yishai said.
Katzav's lawyer Tzion Amir implied vaguely, in a Sunday interview with Israel Radio, that Katzav would in fact step down, even as early as Sunday afternoon.