Minister Miri Regev related Wednesday morning in an interview with Army Radio to the Prime Minister's candle lighting with Likud members, in which he declared that police recommendations have no real significance.
Currently, at the end of police investigations, the police are allowed to recommend whether or not to indict the subject of their investigation. The police recommendations are made public, as is information leaked while investigations are in progress, although there are efforts to prevent the leaks. The Recommendation Law, up for its final readings in the Knesset, stipulates that the police pass on only the results of their investigations, which is their purview, leaving conclusions to be drawn by legal figures. Those backing the law cite the public shaming of people interrogated by the poice, only to have the case against them scrapped by the Attorney General, as are 60% of the police recommendations to indict.
According to the minister, Netanyahu simply described the current situation. "In a proper procedure, the police are the ones who gather evidence and the Attorney General studies it and decides whether to submit an indictment. Today, the Attorney General rejects 60 percent of the police recommendations. Only this week he canceled the recommendations against Rami Levy. In proper procedure the police maintain the public's trust [avoiding accusations of one-sidedness by sticking to investigating] while the Attorney General does his job."
Regev noted that "Netanyahu has nothing against the police, he talks about two issues that bother many in the public - leaks and recommendations.
"Netanyahu's opinion is clear, he doesn't relate to the police's recommendations because they don't say anything, they're media headlines, and if the police recommend an indictment, the recommendation is not what counts, but that of the Attorney General," she added.
She estimated that none of the coalition members would resign following the investigations against the Prime Minister. "I believe that coalition members will wait for the Attorney General and will not repeat the mistakes of the past. Netanyahu is the last person to fear elections. We have nothing to fear, so I don't suggest that we celebrate the police recommendations, and I suggest that everyone who's trying to create cracks in the coalition wait patiently. We have nothing to fear from elections and if they do take place, Netanyahu will be Prime Minister after them."