The appointment of Superintendent Rinat Saban, assistant to the head of the Police Investigations and Intelligence Division, Maj. Gen. Boaz Blat, was allegedly carried out through an irregular and improper procedure, Kan News reported
Saban previously served as an investigator in the cases against Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and testified in “Case 4000” during his trial. Case 4000, the most serious of the charges against Netanyahu due to its bribery allegations, has essentially been debunked. The judges overseeing the case recommended years ago that the bribery charges be dropped.
Saban’s promotion process first made headlines in July when she filed a petition against National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, claiming he was blocking her promotion to the rank of Superintendent. Ben Gvir countered that her petition should be dismissed outright, citing, among other reasons, that Saban is represented by the left-wing Movement for Quality Government, an organization widely criticized for corruption and political bias.
Saban has enjoyed special protection from the protector of all left-wing officials, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, who announced at the time that Ben Gvir’s refusal to sign off on Saban’s promotion was “improper political interference.”
According to the report, this is how Saban’s appointment unfolded: Balut was appointed head of the Investigations and Intelligence Division on September 12, 2024. Just 11 days later, on September 23, 2024, Rinat Saban entered the role of his assistant. Only three weeks after she had already assumed the position did the senior command forum convene to discuss and approve her appointment. In effect, Saban entered a senior role before her appointment received formal authorization.
Standard police procedure for appointments that involve promotion to a senior rank typically includes a competitive tender, interviews, a formal placement discussion, and a final round of approvals. None of these steps were carried out in Saban’s case.
This is not the first time, nor the second, that accusations of misconduct have been raised against police investigators in Netanyahu’s cases. Additionally, in 2023, former Israel Police Chief Roni Alsheich essentially admitted that the objective of the indictments against Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was to force him to resign.
Meanwhile, Baharav-Miara recently sent a letter to Netanyahu warning him that Ben-Gvir could be ousted, claiming (without a trace of irony) that his actions are motivated by political considerations, hinting that she will not represent the government (from which she herself was unanimously dismissed) in petitions to the Supreme Court demanding his ouster
Ben-Gvir issued a harsh response, stating, “Gali Baharav-Miara is a criminal who obstructed investigations in matters in which the Supreme Court ruled she has a conflict of interest. She fabricates cases against elected officials, public servants, and senior officers; openly seeks to carry out a coup against a democratically elected government; revokes laws, derails decisions, and thwarts appointments; and now, the zenith, an attempt to fire elected officials. I will not rest nor be silent until her actions are investigated. Israel will not become a mafia state.”
(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)
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One Response
MK Itamar, you missed the boat! The Israeli judicial system is so corrupt; it is the posterchild for any mafia crime group the world over. Architects of mafioso manifestos will study the Israeli judicial system to copy their criminal activities.