Mandelblit Requests Gantz to Suspend Inquiry Into Submarine Affair

Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit on Sunday asked Defense Minister Benny Gantz (Blue and White) to hold off an investigation into the so-called submarine affair, saying he himself has not completed the prosecution’s investigation into the matter.

“In your letter, you informed me that you had decided to appoint a government inspection committee to review the procurement procedures for the submarines, and you asked me to ensure that the review areas specified in the committee’s letter do not interfere with the proper conduct of criminal proceedings,” Mandelblit wrote to Gantz.

“I therefore ask the committee not to begin its investigation until the review is completed and the required guidelines have been adopted,” he concluded.

In the submarine affair, also known as Case 3000, there are suspicions of corruption during Israel’s purchase of military submarines from German industrial giant ThyssenKrupp for a total sum of around $2 billion.

Gantz has yet to respond to the attorney general’s request, reports said.

Several close associates of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, as well as senior military officials, have already been indicted in connection with this case, but Netanyahu himself has not been a suspect.