Former Police Chief Alsheich Suggests Netanyahu Should Have Resigned Following Indictment

In a surprising revelation, former Police Chief Roni Alsheich stirred up a storm of controversy on Wednesday when he expressed his belief that the Israeli police had anticipated Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s resignation after being indicted on multiple corruption charges. Alsheich’s remarks, made during an interview with Army Radio, claimed that the police had not expected the Prime Minister to remain in office and fight against the charges, which he argued weakened the police force.

When pressed for further details, Alsheich, who served as police chief during the investigation into Netanyahu, clarified that the police had not operated under the assumption of the Prime Minister’s resignation. However, he redirected his comments toward the Likud party, expressing his belief that they should have acknowledged the need for new leadership to protect the country’s best interests. Despite the indictment, the Likud party continued to support Netanyahu as its leader.

Alsheich cited a sense of “basic morality” to support his expectation that Netanyahu would resign, referring to former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who stepped down even before facing corruption charges. Nonetheless, Alsheich acknowledged that the police would not have acted differently, irrespective of Netanyahu’s decision to remain in power. He suggested that the judiciary might have approached the situation differently, but deemed it a difficult question to answer since it did not come to pass.

The Likud party swiftly responded to Alsheich’s remarks, condemning his “shocking admission” and asserting that the determination of Prime Minister Netanyahu to fight for the truth had thwarted any attempts at a government coup. The party called for an investigation into Alsheich and other officials based on his statements.

In response, the State Attorney’s Office issued a statement dismissing any claims that the indictment of Netanyahu was influenced by external factors, labeling them as unfounded. The statement clarified that Alsheich had not participated in the discussions leading to the decision to file an indictment.

Alsheich’s comments faced immediate backlash from members of Netanyahu’s hardline coalition, who accused the former police chief of confessing to an attempted coup against the Prime Minister.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir condemned Alsheich, stating that he had admitted to attempting a coup through investigations and indictments. Ben Gvir claimed that Alsheich’s disregard for democracy and the law demonstrated his sole intention of ousting a democratically elected prime minister.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich lamented the situation, characterizing it as a sad day for the State of Israel. Smotrich criticized officials who had sought to overthrow the government but failed, and now appeared to be attempting to undermine the will of the Israeli voters. He asserted that these attempts would also be unsuccessful.

Both Smotrich and Ben Gvir argued that Alsheich’s remarks underscored the necessity of the government’s planned judicial overhaul, aiming to empower the executive and legislative branches while significantly weakening the judiciary.