Supeme Court Vice President Justice Noam Sohlberg on Thursday granted Attorneyp[ General Gali Baharav‑Miara an extension of the deadline by which she must submit a response to petitions demanding that she recuse herself from the investigation of the MAG's involvement in Force 100 leaks.
Baharav-Miara now has until 10:00 p.m. Thursday night to submit her response to the petitions.
Meanwhile, journalist Amit Segal reported on Channel 12 that Justice Ministry legal adviser Yael Kutik sent a legal opinion letter to Baharav‑Miara clarifying that Baharav-Miara has a serious conflict of interest regarding the Force 100 affair, and thus must withdraw from the investigation.
In her letter, Kutik wrote: “At this stage the Attorney General must refrain from participating in oversight and supervision of the investigation currently underway. This cautious position does not in any way imply criticism or position with respect to the AG’s involvement in the proceedings, but is only intended to ensure the independence of the investigation process even if just for appearances' sake.”
MK Avichay Buaron (Likud) and the Lavi organization, who filed the petitions against Baharav‑Miara, said: “Despite Judge Sohlberg’s decision granting the AG 36 hours (which is a lot of time allowing for many things to be done…), she chose to request yet another extension to submit her response by 10:00 p.m. tonight. For years she has ignored the government, ignored the Knesset, and now she even disrespects the Supreme Court after submitting false statements and a lying affidavit to it.”
“Gali Baharav‑Miara is making a mockery of us all - of every citizen of Israel. In a correct reality she would have withdrawn from the investigation due to her severe conflict of interest. She cannot lead an investigation into which she herself is to be investigated. We can only ask Gali a simple question: What do you have to hide, Gali? Are you also part of the MAG’s silence network? Were you also a partner in the cover‑up of the inquiry?”
The petitioners also expressed satisfaction with the legal opinion issued by the Ministry of Justice, saying: “We welcome the legal opinion of the Ministry of Justice’s legal adviser. The actions of Attorney General Gali Baharav‑Miara in investigating the MAG have tainted the investigation and caused the loss of critical evidence and the most serious obstruction of justice that the State of Israel has ever seen. This is the Case 300 of Attorney General Miara and the Military Advocate General, who joined together to submit false affidavits and sham committees to the Supreme Court and obstructed investigations and legal proceedings throughout the entire time.”