Report: Former Amb. Shapiro to Testify in Case 1000

Former U.S. ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro has been contacted by Israeli police for the purpose of giving testimony in the coming weeks in connection with the investigation into suspicions that Prime Minister Netanyahu received bribes from an Israeli-born Hollywood mogul in exchange for favors, The Times of Israel reported on Monday.

Netanyahu allegedly asked Shapiro and then-U.S. secretary of state John Kerry in 2014 to intervene to obtain a long-term U.S. visa for Arnon Milchan, at the center of the probe into suspicions that he sought to influence the prime minister with lavish personal gifts. The probe is known as Case 1000.

In February, it was reported that Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit had rejected a police request to question Kerry and Shapiro, because there was “no real need at the current time.”

But according to Channel 10 news, that permission has now been given, at least concerning Shapiro, who stayed on in the country with his family after the conclusion of the Obama administration, and currently works in an Israel think tank.

Shapiro would not comment on the report, and Mandelblit’s office was not available for comment either.