Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein faces a real legal difficulty in defending the appointment of Major General Yoav Galant as the next IDF chief of staff, the Attorney General's Office informed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today.
This does not necessarily mean that Weinstein has decided not to defend the Galant appointment before the High Court of Justice. Discussions on the matter continued this morning, and the Attorney General is due to notify the High Court of Justice this afternoon.
The political, legal, and military establishments are waiting for Weinstein's final announcement, in view of the findings by State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss in the misappropriation of public land at Moshav Amikam, which he delivered to Weinstein last week.
In response to Weinstein's announcement, Minister for the Improvement of Government Services Michael Eitan said, "This is a clear and unequivocal message: the state will not defend someone who exploited his status to obtain benefits. Today's message from the State Comptroller and the Attorney General to Israel's citizens is unequivocal: anyone who exploits his position and job to illegally obtain benefits at the public's expense - the state will not protect him, and is not worthy of a public position."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on February 1, 2011
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