Minister of Internal Security Gilad Erdan announced last night that he was compelled to withdraw Brig. Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch's candidacy as Israel's next police chief. His decision followed the protracted investigation into Hirsch, which he said had no end in sight. Erdan must now seek another candidate to replace outgoing Israel police commissioner Yohanan Danino.
Hirsch is currently being investigated by Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein regarding the activities in Georgia of a business he owned. Weinstein's team had been due to meet with Hirsch over the next few weeks.
Erdan said, "A month ago I nominated Gal Hirsch to be police commissioner. He is a good, moral, honest, and talented person. He is a security expert with many years under his belt. Since my announcement, he has regrettably undergone a campaign of de-legitimization and demonization, character assassination and libel. The public feels this and has expressed great support for Gal and his candidacy. The investigation procedure taking place on Gal's affairs has continued a long time. No opinion has yet been submitted to the Turkel Committee and there is no end to the process on the horizon."
Erdan added that he had been told by the Ministry of Justice that Hirsch was not suspected of anything and nobody had lodged a complaint against him.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu put out a similar statement to Erdan.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on September 24, 2015
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